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UNITED STATES OF AMEBIC A. 



COURSE OF LECTURES - 

FUTURE PUNISHMENT, 



DELIVERED AT THE 



BAPTIST MEETING-HOUSE 



I.v 



CHERRYFIELD. 



BY WILSON C. RIDER, A. M. 
Pastor of the First Baptist Church in Cherryfield, 



PUBLISHED BY REQUEST, 



* # 
# ■ 



DANIEL T. PIKE & CO., PRINTERS 



MDCCCXXXVK 






? * 






Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1836, br 

WILSON C. RIDER, A. BL, 

in the Clerks OfHco of the District Conrt of Maine, 



£$// 



PREF AC £. 



If the opinion of a distinguished philosopher in England, be cor- 
rect, that every Christian who can write, ought to leave something 
behind him against infidelity, I may be excused in presenting the 
following Lectures to the public ; seeing the sentiments I have en- 
deavored to expose, are so nearly allied to bare-faced Deism. 

The design of this series of Lectures, was to diversify the ordi- 
nary course of ministerial instructions, and to bring together vari- 
ous facts and considerations, so that they might aid each other by 
their arrangement and union. They were prepared, and delivered, 
without the least intention of publication ; — but as soon a3 they 
were completed, the Church and Society, for whose benefit they 
were primarily intended, expressed an earnest wish that they might 
be given to the public. 

With regard to the immediate effect of these Lectures, all the 
expectations of the author have been more than realized. In offer- 
ing them to the public he can truly say, that he has yielded with a 
reluctance, which could be overcome only by an ascertained earnest- 
ness, expressed by members of bis Church, and his brethren in the 
Ministry, whos^Wpinion and desire would have weight on the minds 
of those who knew them. Indulging the hope that they might con- 
tribute to establish the wavering; to g 3 unwary ; and to aid 
in the dissemination of truth, and in the - )pression of a baneful 
and spreading error, he is now glad ,e importunity was ex- 
pressed and has been complied wh has often been remark- 
ed to him by those whose sentimei s here exposed, that the 
Orthodox do not receive the ndiess punishment as a 
Bible truth, of the highest pi tance, but as a mere spec- 
ulative proposition, to be adna j purpose of completing a 
system of theology, and that v in > -.ctice consistent with 
their professions they would ifest so much indifference to 
the subject, but would endefl iblish it from reason and rev- 
elation, and to impress : die mind. I have felt the re- 
proof. And I fear that i r we cannot say, that we "are 
pure from the blood of i id especially that Ministers of 
the Gospel have not soim arm as loudly, and as repeatedly 
&s they ought to have do . they have lamented the baneful 



t PREFACE. 

Elects of those errors which they saw thousands in the communitT 
receiving as sacred truth, while they could keep up the appearance 
of being believers in Christianity, and yefe deny all that the natural 1 
heart deemed offensive in its doctrines, and throw ofif all that it- 
deemed uncomfortable in its restraints. But through fear, that no- 
ticing such errors, might give them a consequence to which they 
were not entitled, they have been induced to stand aloof from the 
contest, and to indulge the hope that doctrines so absurd and un- 
scriptural w r ould, if let alone, die of themselves. Thus did not the 
Apostles, and Martyrs, and Reformers in the first ages of Christiaa- 
ity, and in the sixteenth, century. They attacked every prevailing 
error that threatened the subversion of Christianity, however weak 
and contemptible, or popular and powerful it might be. And this 
is the duty enjoined upon ministers of the Gospel by the Great 
Head of the Church. "Have no fellowship with the unfruitful 
works of darkness, but rather reprove them." " Contend, earnestly, 
for the faith, once delivered unto the saints." 

From these, and other considerations,, the author has deToted the 
first three Lectures of this Series to- " TJie Scripture Proofs of End- 
less Punishment." He has felt that the exigencies of the time* 
rendered it necessary to show, that the grounds, on which this doc- 
trine rests, are not slender and fallacious^ bu-t permanent as the truth 
of God. Impressed with the full belief that the Reductions of sound 
reason, and the principles of common sense> harrnjPrce in every im- 
portant point with the Sacred Scriptures, he has also argued the 
doctrine of endless punishment, "from facts and considerations that 
are independent of direct Scripture testimony" These arguments* 
which have been deduced from revelation and reason, might have 
been extended, but it is not necessary, since, those who are deter- 
mined to reject the doctrine of endless punishment, and to rest their 
hope of Heaven on the presumption of its being false, will not b*> 
likely to be converted to the truth by the strongest, or most numer> 
pus arguments ; for, 

" A man convinced against his will, 
Is of the same opinion still." 

Aware that there is much diversity of opinion among some por- 
tions of the Christian community, respecting the nature of futnre 
punishment; and that other portions have no definite idea upon the 
subject ; and impressed with the belief that a consistent and scrip- 
tural view of this subject will serve to illustrate the equity of the* 
Divine procedure in punishing his rebellious subjects with Qndloa* 



PREFACE. 5 

torments, the author has frankly expressed his own views of th<a 
" constituent parts of this punishment " or the principal ingredients 
in that cup, which is to be the future portion of the wicked. He has 
also endeavored to expose the artful and unscriptural " methods by 
trhich modern objectors to endless punishment, evade the force of Scrip- 
ture testimony on that subject" — " to give the true principle of inter- 
pretation, in reference to those passages of Scripture that are supposed 
to assert or imply the final salvation of all men" — * to refute the 
arguments by which they endeavor to overthrow the doctrine of endless 
punishment" and " to point out the sources, the nature, and tlu 
dangerous moral consequences of their scheme" 

If the doctrine advanced in the following Lectures be true, it is 
a most interesting and important doctrine. However contrary to the 
teelings or wishes of any, it is by all means necessary to be known. 
Surely no man would wish " to flatter himself in his own eyes, till 
his iniquity be found to be hateful." And we deem it the more im- 
portant that the subjects proposed should receive an ample discus- 
sion, because there are a numerous class of people who are sitting 
down easy in the expectation of "peace and safety, while sudden 
destruction is coming upon them ; ' and we wish to lead them to a 
careful and attentive examination of the mental process by which 
they arrived at their present conclusions. And we believe that such 
persons may not be so attached to their peculiar opinions, as to be 
beyond the reach of the Gospel, [f they be treated with kindness, 
and if sound arguments be presented, we may rationally hope that 
they will be induced to review the subject, and decide the question 
with some degree of candor and impartiality. But these Lecture* 
are not entered upon solely, nor chiefly for the benefit of that class 
of people. There are multitudes of our youth who feel powerfully 
inclined to reject a doctrine of such overwhelming import as that of 
future and eternal punishment, and to embrace a religious scheme 
that is fraught with the most pernicious and fatal consequences ; 
and many more still, who in theory admit the doctrine which we 
have endeavored to establish, do not possess a strong and practical 
conviction of its reality and importance. Our object, therefore,' is 
not merely to establish your minds in the speculative notion that 
some men will be eternally miserable, but to present such an array 
of evidence, as shall create a deep and abiding conviction of the 
truth of the doctrine ; and such as shall impress upon the heart the 
necessity of fleeing to Christ for pardon and salvation. 

Throughout the whole, the author has endeavored to divest these 

A* 



6 PREFACE. 

Lectures from the tone of controversy, and to give them a practical 
bearing'. He has used great plainness of speech, for which he need 
make no prefatory apologies. If in any case he has seemed to use 
language with too much severity, he can safely say, that it has not 
been from any unkind feelings towards those whose sentiments he 
has exposed, but from an earnest solicitude to promote their spiritu- 
al and eternal well-being. 

In these Lectures, the autbor makes no pretensions to originality 
of thought ana* expression beyond those to which he is entitled. — 
To a rational and scriptural view of the truths in the subjects he 
has proposed, and to a satisfactory solution of the difficulties which 
have been objected to it, the author has devoted much time, labor 
and care ; and he has availed himself of all the aid which he could 
obtain from his predecessors, to whose writings he could have ac- 
cess. Pie has not scrupled to make a free use of their polemical 
works,, compressing their ideas into a small compass, and generally 
clothing them in his own language, and arranging them in the more 
inviting form of popular lectures, and giving them an adaptation to 
the capacities of common minds. After these Lectures were deliv- 
ered, and he had concluded to publish them, he found it difficult in 
many instances to discriminate between the ideas or even the ex- 
pressions borrowed from others, and those which were original. — - 
Rather, therefore, than attempt to distinguish all the extracts by the 
sign of quotation, he prefers to devote his time to other objects which 
would better compensate him for his labor.- And it is a question of 
but little consequence with the public, whether this or that passage 
has been quoted, or this or that argument has been advanced and 
supported by another, or whether they are his own. The only ques- 
tion of importance is, " What is truth ?" May the God of truth, by 
the spirit of his grace, guide the understanding and heart of the 
reader, that he- may peruse this volume with a mind divested of ev- 
ery prepossession and of all prejudice, and may it be instrumental 
in promoting his present and future welfare. 

To the people of his charge, whose friendly attentions lie grate- 
fully bears in mind, and in whose welfare he cherishes the liveliest 
interest, and whose many expressions of kindness and affection he 
would gladly reciprocate by his most earnest endeavors to promote 
their spiritual and eternal 'ell-being, these Lectures are now in- 
scribed, with sentiment ■:" affectionate regard, and fervent prayers,, 
by their Pastor, 

W. C. RIDER. 



cewTEimw. 



LECTURE I. 

SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 

Matt, xxv : 46. — And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, bat 
the righteous into life eternal. 

LECTURE II. 

SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED. 

John iii : 36. — He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he 
that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him. 

LECTURE HI. 

SAME SUBTECT CONTINUED. 
Gal. vi : 7,8. — Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man 
soweth,that also shall he reap. For he that sowelh to his flesh, shall of the flesh 
reap corruption ; but he that soweth to the spirit, shall of the spirit reap life ev- 
erlasting. 

LECTURE IV. 

COLLATERAL PROOFS OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 

Ezekiel xviii : 4. — The soul that sinneth, it shall die. 

LECTURE y. 

CONSTITUENT PARTS OF THE FUTURE PUNISHMENT OF 

THE WICKED. 
Mark ix : 44. — Where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 

LECTURE VI. 

ON THE METHODS BY WHICH MODERN OBJECTORS TO 

ENDLESS PUNISHMENT EVADE THE FORCE OF SCRIPTURE 
TESTIMONY RESPECTING THAT SUBJECT. 

Jeremiah xxiii : 16, 17. — Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, Hearken not auto 
ih« words of the prophets that prophecy unto you; they make you vain ; they 



8 CONTENTS. 

rpeak a vision of their own heart and not out of the mouth of the Lord. They 
gay unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said ye shall have peace, a»d they 
i?ay unto every one that walketh after the imagination of hi3 own heart, No evil 
shall come upon you. 

LECTURE VII. 

SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED. 
Acts xiii : 8,9-, 10. — But F.lymas the sorcerer (for so is his name hy interpret- 
ation} withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Then 

Saul (who is ako called Paul) filled with the Holy Ghostj set his eyes on him 
and said, O full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou en- 
emy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of tha 
Lordl 

LECTURE VIII. 

THE TRUE PRINCIPLES OF INTERPRETATION WITH 

EEFRRKRCS TO THOSE PASSAGES OF SCRIPTURE WHICH ARE 

SUPPOSED TO ASSERT OR IMPLY THAT ALE MA>'Ei;<D 

WILL BE ULTIMATELY RESTORED TO PARITY 

AND HAPPINESS. 

2 Petee. iii : 16.— As also in all his epistles, speaking in themof these things 
in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned 
ai«i unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures unto their own destruction- 

LECTURE IX. 
ON THE ARGUMENTS WHICH OBJECTORS TO THE 

DOCTRINE OE ENDLESS PUNISHMENT C RG E AGAINST THAT DOCTRINE. 

C iiNESis iii : 4. — Ye shall not surely die, 

LECTURE X. 

THE SOURCES, THE EVIL NATURE, AND THE DAN- 

GEROUS MORAL CONSEQUENCES OF A SCHEME WHICH DENIES 
THE DOCTRINE OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT, AND ADVO- 
CATES THE FINAL SALVATION OF ALL MANKIND. 

Proverbs xix : 27. — Cease my son, to hear the instruction that eaasetu to 
err from the words of knowledge. 

APPENDIX. 
CONVERSION OF A UNIVERSALIS!*. 



IdECTURE I. 

SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT, 

Matthew xxv : 46. — And these shall go away into everlasting punish- 
ment ; but the righteous into life eternal. 

I 5 tills text it is asserted, that impenitent sinners shall go away 
into everlasting punishment. This solemn and affecting declaration 
of our Savior and our final Judge has been very generally regard- 
ed by Christians of every age and nation, as intending in the strict- 
est sense, a punishment endless in duration. But there have been 
multitudes of persons, particularly of modern times, who style them- 
selves Christians, that have objected to this interpretation, and in- 
sisted, either that there will be no punishment hereafter, or that this 
punishment will be disciplinary, and that the subjects of it will be 
eventually restored to purity and happiness. "In support of this 
opinion and in opposition to that which has been generally received 
by the whole Christian world, they have advanced various argu- 
ments and objections which they consider as unanswerable,, and to 
which they apparently yield their own assent/' Now it is propel- 
to examine these arguments and objections, and either to expos? 
their fallacy, or to acknowledge that they cannot be refuted. But 
there is a feeling in some minds, that doctrines, the most absurd and 
unscriptural, have no need to be answered. To let error alone, 
however, in expectation that it will die of itself, is not an apostolic 
course. There is as little scripture as reason for this policy of neg- 
lect. The expediency ot answering, seems to depend upon the 



10 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect.1. 

actual effect of error, more than upon its inherent plausibility or 
absurdity. And it is a fact, that thousands in this community are 
taught to regard the doctrine of future punishment as a Pagan su- 
perstition, and that of universal salvation, as sacred truth. And 
they are strengthened in their opinions from the fact, that there is 
bo little interest awakened in the minds of the Orthodox, in relation 
to this subject; and that they are making no persevering attempt to 
establish the doctrine of endless punishment, and to refute the ob- 
jections that are alleged against it. They also seem desirous of 
persuading the public, that the ground on which we rest our belief 
of the doctrine of endless punishment, is very slender and fallacious, 
and that we do not receive it as a Bible truth of the highest prac- 
tical importance, which ought to be interwoven with the whole train 
of our thoughts and actions ; but as a mere speculative proposition, 
to be admitted for the purpose of completing a system of Theologi- 
cal belief. From these considerations, I think it highly important 
that we should state, with all possible perspicuity, the grounds on 
which we rest our belief of the doctrine in question. 

Before I proceed, however, I shall make a few observations for 
the purpose of removing, if possible, a prejudice that many cherish 
against this doctrine. The subject is unquestionably awful and 
affecting beyond comparison. But few persons of tender sensibilities 
can contemplate it in all its magnitude and importance, without the 
most overwhelming sensations. No numbers can estimate, no Unite 
thought can conceive, how important an object is the final destiny 
of one immortal being. How entirely overwhelmed, then, must he 
be who contemplates it, when he remembers the affecting declar- 
ation of our Saviour, and beholds it verified by melancholy experi- 
ence, that "Wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to 
destruction, and many there be which go in thereat." 

The subject is also unquestionably perplexing, as well as painful. 
Some persons, I am aware, speak of the doctrine in question as be- 
ing, in their view, easy of investigation, and free from all embar- 
rassment. But it may be fairly questioned, whether they have given 
the subject such a thorough and scriptural investigation, as might 
furnish them with just views of its nature. Others discourse of it 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 11 

in the style and utterance, that belong to that kind of vehemen^ 
declamation, which we find often attached to a strain of bitter invec- 
tive. Some allowance may here be made for the strong impulses 
of ardent minds, and for the mistaken apprehensions of duty. In 
this manner we may excuse, but cannot justify, their boldness or 
severity, when they would have been more successful, if they had 
resorted to a milder and more persuasive strain. Were such per- 
sons to remember, that, while they are declaring the doctrine of 
endless punishment, they may be at the very same time alleging 
arguments which are to effect themselves and to evince their own 
final destruction, as well as that of many of their friends, would 
not their mode of address be changed, and an air of unaffected ten- 
derness and a spirit of genuine compassion be preserved ? The 
violence and exaggeration, which have characterized the addresses 
of many public speakers on this subject, have no doubt awakened 
mere horror concerning it, and led some to the conclusion that the 
principles on which it was based were selfish and revengeful. 

But awful, affecting, and perplexing, as this subject is, it is often 
taught in the sacred Oracles. In establishing the doctrine under 
consideration, we must rely wholly upon the testimony of the Bible, 
since it is impossible, in the very nature of things, that the fact and 
duration of future punishment should be proved by arguments drawn 
from the light of nature ; because the intention of God can be known 
only by express declarations. Human reason has no eye to pene- 
trate beyond the grave — no lamp to explore the deep recesses of 
eternity. Without the aid of revelation, man in his fallen state can 
know nothing of his future destiny. But the Bible unfolds this sub- 
ject with absolute certainty. 

It should be our supreme concern, to hear with candor and docil- 
ity what the Holy Scriptures teach — and to submit ourselves to 
the decisions of these sacred Oracles. We should not presume to 
form a theory of religious faith for ourselves, which shall accord 
with our prejudices acd prepossessions, and then attempt to support 
it by legitimate and grammatical interpretations of the Bible ; but 
we should repair to the Bible, divested of every pre-conceived opin- 
ion, and determined to receive nothing as evangelical truth, for the 
support of which we have not an express precept or example. 



m SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. I. 

Bearing in mind these remarks, let me now call your candid 
attention to the testimony of God respecting the endless punishment 
of the wicked. This testimony cannot fail of being peculiarly in- 
teresting to us. To know and believe it, as established by the clear 
and infallible proofs of Inspiration, may be the very means of pre- 
venting your final ruin, and of turning your wayward feet into the 
path of life. To cavil with, or to reject this testimony without im- 
partial investigation, on the other hand, can be of no possible ben- 
efit to you, and may prove fatally injurious. Were there no possible 
way of escape " from the wrath to come " provided for lost and per- 
ishing sinners, and were not this way published to thenl during their 
probation for the rewards of eternity, they might indeed remain in 
the most profound ignorance of the evils to which they are advanc- 
ing. But as the knowledge of the final destiny ot the sinner is 
absolutely necessary in order to induce us to repent and believe the 
gospel, this knowledge is of the highest practical importance. 
Permit me then to lay before you a concise and comprehensive view 
of the Scripture Proofs of the endless duration of future punish- 
ment. And let me hope that you will listen with calmness, and 
decide with impartiality. 

I. All those passages of Scripture, which speak of the 

DURATION OF FUTURE PUNISHMENT BY THE TERMS u EVERLASTING," 
" ETERNAL," " FOREVER," AND " FOREVER AND EVER," PROVE THAT 
THIS PUNISHMENT WILL BE ENDLESS. 

" The sinners in Zion are afraid ; fearfulness hath surprised tbe 
hypocrites ; Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire ? 

who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings ? And many 

of them (or the multitudes of them) that sleep in the dust of the earth, 
shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and ever- 
lasting contempt. It is better for thee to enter into life halt and 

maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to t be cast into 

•everlasting fire. Depart from me ye cursed, into everlasting fire 

prepared for the devil and his angels. And these shall go away 

into everlasting punishment. But he that shall blaspheme against 

the Holy Ghost, hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal 
damnation. The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from[heaven, with 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 15 

his mighty angels, in flaming lire, taking vengeance on them that 
know not God, and obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ — 
who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the pres- 
ence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power. And the an- 
gels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, 
he hath reserved in everlasting chains, under darkness, unto the 

judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and 

the cities about them, in like manner, giving themselves over to 
fornication and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an exam- 
ple, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. These are wells 

without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest, to whom the 

mist of darkness is reserved forever. Wandering stars, to whom 

is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. If any man wor- 
ship the beast, or his image, and receive his mark in his forehead^ 
or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of 
God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indig- 
nation : and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the 
presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and 

the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever. And 

they said Alleluia ! and her smoke rose up forever and ever. And 

the devil that deceived them was cast into a lake of fire and brim- 
stone where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tor- 
mented day and night forever and ever J 1 * 

To destroy the practical influence of this testimony, the objectors 
to the doctrine of endless punishment allege the few instances in 
which the terms everlasting, eternal, &c, are used in scripture, as 
connected with punishment. To decide whether a doctrine is 
taught in the Bible, it is not necessary to ascertain how many times 
it is asserted, but whether it is asserted at all. The truth of a doc- 
trine cannot depend upon the frequency with which it is repeated. 
One divine asseveration of any truth is sufficient to bind our faith. 
Let no one think that the evidence is not conclusive, because the 

*Isa. xxxiii. 14. Dan. xh. 2. Matt, xviii. 8— xx v. 41, 46, Mark iii. 29. 
2 Thess. i. 7—9. Jude 6, 7. 2 Peter ii. 17. Jude 13- Rev< xiv. 9—11. 
Rev. xix. 3. Rev. xx. 10. 

B 



14 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OP (Lect.1. 

words rendered everlasting, &c, are applied to future punishment 
but five or six times out of the ninety-six in which they are found 
in the New Testament This is as large a proportion as the sub- 
ject requires, and as could be expected from the nature of the case. 
They are in the New Testament applied to about twenty different 
subjects, so that to be applied to one but five or six times only, is 
about as frequent as Qouid be reasonably expected. Further, if 
these terms do not teach the doctrine of endless punishment because 
they are thus seldom applied to it, they do not teach the endless 
duration ot the existence of God, for to this they are not much more 
frequently applied. 

It is also objected that the terms under consideration cannot sig- 
nify an absolute eternity, " because in the original, they admit of a 
plural number ; that had the meaning of the substantive axon been 
eternity, and of the adjective aionios, endless, they could not possess 
a plural signification, since it would have involved the same absurd- 
ity as is manifest, when, attaching to the term eternity the sense 
which it always bears in the English language, we speak of eterni- 
ties." The words in English, that are properly expressive of end- 
less duration, may not ordinarily admit of a plural number, and if 
this were invariably the case it would not follow that it is the same 
in the Greek. In the Greek language there are several instances 
recorded both by sacred and profane authors, where the plural form 
of expression is used to convey the idea of endless duration. Per- 
mit me to refer you to a few of the many instances in which the 
plural form of expression is thus used in the New Testament. In 
Gal. i. 5. — Ho he doxas eis tons aionas ton aionon : To whom bt 
glory forever and ever. Thus in Eph. iii. 11. — Kata prosthein ton 
aionon : According to his eternal purpose. Thus, Phil. iv. 20.— To 
de theo, kai patri hemon, he doxa eis tons aiGnas ton aionon : Where- 
fore to God even our Father be the glory forever and ever. So also in 
1 Tim. i. 17. — To de basilei ion aionon apMharto, aorato, mono sopho 
theo time kai doxe eis tous aionas ton aionon : JVbw to the King eter- 
nal, immortal, invisible, to the wise God alone, be honor and glory 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 15 

forever and ever. These passages cannot, I think, be properly trans- 
lated, without expressing the idea of endless duration. 

But what if the terms forever and ever, everlasting, and eternal, 
do not always denote unlimited duration ? Does it then follow, that 
salvation will be the ultimate portion of all who die in their sins ? 
By no means. We might concede all these terms, and yet th« tes- 
timony of scripture in proof of endless punishment would remain 
conclusive. The doctrine of endless punishment does not rest 
wholly, upon the doubtful interpretation of a few Greek words and 
phrases. It is asserted in the Bible in such a variety of forms, and 
is so interwoven through the whole texture of the scriptures, that 
it would seem that nothing but the consciousness of such conduct as 
weakens the hope of eternal felicity, connected with the fear and 
dread of endless misery, could induce any one who is conversant 
with the Bible to disbelieve or deny its reality. 

Since so much is said, however, by the objectors whom I have 
mentioned, respecting the limited meaning of these terms under 
consideration, let us inquire into their original and proper import ; 
the manner in which they are uniformly used in the scriptures of the 
Old and JVew Testaments ; the manner in which they are invariably 
used in the New Testament scriptures ; and the sense in which Christ 
and his apostles must have been understood to have used them, at the 
time they spoke and wrote* 

These terms do in their original and proper sense denote duration 

, without end. It is, I believe, generally allowed by our best Lexi- 
cographers, ancient and modern, that aion is a compound of the two 
Greek words aei and on, which properly signify always being ; and 
that the literal meaning of its derivative aionios is everlasting, eter- 
nal, endless. The Greeks were a people of a speculative turn of 
mind, and they had an idea of duration without end ; and this is all 
the idea of eternity that we can obtain. By them these terms were 
understood and used as signifying an absolute eternity,* and thus 

* Aristotle, a Grecian philosopher, who lived upwards of three hundred years 
prior to the Christian era, explicitly informs us of the meaning which the 
Greek writers of his age, and those who were then considered the ancients, af* 



J6 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. h 

have they been used by the great body of the most profound Gree 
scholars ever since. Now, should any one examine the various 
classical Greek authors, he would not, I presume, find a more ener- 
getic phrase, in the whole compass of their writings, to express the 
idea of endless duration than is found in the Bible to express th" 
idea of endless punishment 

But the only fair and safe rule of interpretation used by all goo- 
critics on all other subjects is, to understand words and phrases in 
their literal and 'primary sense, unless there be something in the subject 
or connection which requires them to be taken in a metaphorical sense. 
Now the literal and primary meaning of axon is always being, and 
of aiomos is everlasting, eternal. In this sense they should be un- 
derstood unless 1 their meaning be necessarily res-ricted by the sub- 
ject or connection. But when these terms are applied to objects 
that relate only to this state of being, as they sometimes are, or 
vrhen they are applied to objects which are known to be in their 
own nature incapable of eternal duration ; we know from the nature 
of the case, that they are used not in their primary but in their fig- 
urative sense. And when applied to things that are capable of 
endless duration, and there is nothing in the subject or connection 
which requires them to be taken in a figurative sense, they should 
be understood in their literal and proper acceptation. On this prin- 
ciple we say they denote endless duration when applied to the be- 
ing and perfection of God, to the stability of his kingdom, to the 
dominion of Christ, and to the future felicity of the righteous. 
And why not understand them in the same sense in those passages 
where they are applied to the future punishment of the wicked. — 
There i3 nothing in this, more than in the former cases to restrict 
their meaning. It is nowhere said, of that punishment to which the 

fixed to the word aiokos, — speaking of the deities whom he eonsidered iramor 
tal, unchangeable, self-sufficient, and perfectly happy, — he adds, "They contin- 
ue through all aiona, [eternity]. And this the ancients admirably signified hy 
the word itself: for they call the time of each person's life, his aion, inasmuch 
as nothing, according to the laws ot nature, exists out of its limits, and for the same 
reason, that which comprehends the duration of the whole heaven, the whole of 
infinite time, of infinity itself is called aiona [eternity], taking its na.me from 
its being always [kinai aei} immoxtaj a*d divine. 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. i7 

wicked will go with the devil and his angels,that it will have an end, 
nor that it has already come to an end, nor that it is impossible in 
the nature of things for it to be endless, I see no reason therefore 
for understanding these terms, as used in relation to punishment, 
otherwise than in their primary and proper acceptation. 

TJie terms under consideration are uniformly used in the scriptures 
to denote the longest possible duration of which the subject to which 
they are applied is capable and ivhere the duration is limited the limi- 
tation is such as necessarily arises from the nature of the case. Thus 
when it is said " One generation passelh away, and another cornet!^ 
but the earth abideth forever,"* it seems to signify merely along pe- 
riod. If the destruction of this world mentioned in the scriptures., 
however, denotes the annihilation of its atoms, as well as the ruin 
of its form and structure, then when the earth is said to abide for- 
ever we are to understand the term in a metaphorical sense ; as sig- 
nifying that the earth will endure for a long time compared with 
the period of a human generation. But if there is no reason to be- 
lieve that the elements ever have been or ever will be annihilated ;, 
but after changing their form will become the materials of the " new 
earth wherein righteousness shall dwell," then the term is used in 
a literal sense and denotes endless duration. 

In such other cases, as I have observed, these terms when used 
in a metaphorical sense they denote the longest period of which the 
subject united with them is capable. Thus when it is said of the 
servant whose ear was bored in his master's house, "he shall serve 
him eis ton aiona forever "\ the meaning is that he should never go 
free, but be a servant during the longest period in which he could 
be a servant ; that is during his life. When Hannah devoted her 
child, Samuel, to the Lord " eis ton aiona for ever ?% there was no 
limitation in her own mind. She did not intend that he should ever 
return to a private life. When Jonah cried out in the bitterness of 
his soul that the earth with her bars was about him, eis ton aiona 
forever"^ the term is not expressive of what it actually proved* 
namely, an imprisonment of three days only, but of what it was in 

* Eccl. i : 4. f Ex, xx'i : G. % 1 Sam. i : 22. fj Jonah ii ; 6. 



13 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. I, 

his own painful apprehensions which were that lie should never 
more see the light. Thus '* an ordinance eis ton aiona forever?* is 
an ordinance continuing through the longest time in which it can 
l?e an ordinance, that is, throughout the continuance of the whole 
dispensation of which it was an institute. In the same manner the 
"everlasting hills,'*f and " everlasting mountains,'*]: denote hills and 
mountains that will continue to the end of the world, or as long as 
it is possihle for them to continue. And thus when it is said "The 
Father will give you another Comforter that he may abide with you 
>fS*s ton aiona forever,'' || the meaning is, that they should never be 
deprived of the sacred influences of the Holy Spirit. He should 
be their constant attendant and guide through life, be with their 
successors to the end of time, and afford those consolations of God 
which will be the eternal' joy cf all the saints. 

According to this rule, if after this world is ended and successive 
duration consequently terminated, we read that the wicked shall go 
away into everlasting punishment ; this term must be understood in 
its most extensive sense as denoting an endless duration. For with 
respect to the things of a future world such a duration will then 
evidently be possible. 

This conclusion is rendered morally certain by the manner in 
which the two words aion. and its derivative aionios, translated eter- 
nal, forever, and forever and ever, are invariably used in the 
scriptures of the New Testament — aion is used in the common 
copies of the Greek New Testament in ninety-six instances. 
in fifty -five of these the word certainly means unlimited duration, 
either past or future, besides those which relate to punishment. 
And there is no case in which it is employed to designate a definite 
period. With respect to aion when governed by the preposition 
eis in which connection it is always used, when applied to the future 
punishment of the wicked, it uniformly denotes endless duration. 
It is found in this construction in sixty -one places in the Greek 
New Testament. In six of these places it is applied to future pun- 
ishment. That, in the remaining fifty-five, it undeniably 
expresses endless duration, I appeal to the reader. Now if in fifty- 
* Num. x : S. f Gen. si: 26. % Kab. iii : 6. || John xiv : 16; 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. ID 

five instances it expresses duration without end, is it not reasona- 
ble to conclude that it lias the same meaning in the six instances in 
which it is applied to future punishment ? The phrase eis ious aio- 
nas Ion aionon commonly renderedjbrerer and ever is used in twen- 
ty-one instances in the New Testament. I believe there is not a 
single example of its being used to convey any other than the idea 
of endless duration. In eighteen instances, it is applied to the con- 
tinuance of the perfections, glory, government, and praise of God 
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. In one, it is said of the 
righteous in the future world that, u thev shall re i^n eis toils 
aionas ion ai aon, forever and ever ■."* In the other remaining two 
instances it is applied to future punishment. Is it not reasona- 
ble then to conclude that in these two instances it also denotes 
endless duration? Would the inspired writers have employed this 
phrase eighteen times to denote an absolute eternity and twice to 
denote that which was infinitely different, while these were the 
only instances in which the phrase was applied to these subjects — 
the perfections of God, and the future destiny of the wicked? 

The adjective aionios, everlasting, is employed in seventy-one 
places in the whole New Testament. In forty-four of these it is 
used ia relation to the future life of the righteous, and therefore is 
used in the endless sense. In four it is employed in relation to the 
perfections of God. In three it is applied to the redemption cf 
Christ, the covenant of grace and the gospel. Here it is used in 
the endless sense. In eleven it relates to subjects of a miscellane- 
ous nature. Once it is applied to the kingdom of Christ. And ia 
seven it is used in reference to future punishment. Now in all the 
instances in which it relates to future time except the seven in which 
it is applied to future punishment, it confessedly denotes unlimited 
duration. Is it not reasonable then, to suppose that in these seven 
instances it also denotes unlimited duration ? If it has not this mean- 
ing in these instances the scriptures do not decide that God is eter- 
nal, nor that the happiness of the righteous is without end, nor that 
the covenant of grace will always remain, 

• Key. xrii.i 5. 



20 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. J. 

When Christ and his apostles wrote for us a complete system of 
theology, if they intended to have been understood they must have 
•used the terms in question according* to their known and established 
signification, at the time they spoke and wrote. Now the Jews, 
especially the Essens and Pharisees, two leading sects among them, 
held the doctrine of the endless punishment of the wicked as is 
clear from the indubitable testimony of Josephus and Philo. Jose- 
phus says, "The Pharisees held that the souls of the wicked were 
to be punished with perpetual punishment, and that there was ap- 
pointed for them a perpetual prison." He makes a similar remark 
respecting the doctrine of the Essens. Philo remarks that, " The 
punishment of the wicked is to live forever dying, and to be in 
pains and griefs that never cease." The same fact is also abund- 
antly proved from Sabbinical writings and from the Tarquins. Plow 
then would the Jews understand our Lord and his apostles when 
they heard them freely using these terms, everlasting, eternal, for- 
ever, and forever and ever, in relation to future punishment ? If the 
Jews, who believed in the doctrine of endless punishment, did not 
learn it from the scriptures of the Old Testament, but from the idol- 
atrous nations around, as some pretend to argue, and if our Lord knew 
that this doctrine was false and meant to teach the ultimate resti- 
tution of the wicked to virtue and happiness, would he have spoken 
of future punishment in language which, according to the establish- 
ed usage of the day, was known to express an absolute eternity ? 
Would he not have plainly pointed out their error as he did other 
errors that had been introduced. Every man in his senses must 
believe that by this course he designedly confirmed them in their 
error, or else he meant to teach the doctrine of endless punishment. 

Having made these general observations, let us go into an exam- 
ination of each individual passage which speaks of everlasting pun- 
ishment. This we shall do for the purpose of showing the absurdity 
of those interpretations which are given to disprove the doctrine of 
endless punishment; of giving the true interpretation of these pas- 
sages; and of showing that, taken separate, they contain interna 1 
evidence of the doctrine we are endeavoring to establish. 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 21 

"The sinners in Zion are afraid, fearfulness hath surprised the 
hypocrites ; Who among us shall dwell with devouring fire, who 
among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings !"* The objectors 
to endless punishment interpret this passage as a prediction of the 
destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans. But it is necessary to 
read this with the preceding chapters only — where the army of the 
Assyrians is mentioned by name, to see that the subject is the de- 
struction of that army. There is nothing said respecting the de- 
struction of Jerusalem. 

The true interpretation of the passage before us, I conceive to 
be this. When the rebellious Israelites saw the dreadful execution 
of the Divine displeasure upon the army of the Assyrians, — the an- 
gel smiting in one night eighty-five thousand chosen men, they are 
represented as being powerfully impressed with the fear of Jeho- 
vah and with a consciousness of having provoked him by their own 
revolting idolatry ; and hence they cry out in the anguish of their 
souls, " Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings 1" 
"God's judgments upon the enemies of Zion struck terror upon the 
sinners in Zion." They saw that, if the wrath of God was such a 
consuming fire, working such devastation and ruin in one night, they 
could not endure its everlasting burnings. This opinion is confirm- 
ed by the context. From the seventh to the tenth verse, we have 
the consternation and distress into which Judah and Jerusalem were 
brought by the invasion of Sennacherih's army. In this extremity 
God declares, as in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth verses, in the 
most sublime strain, that he will arise and exalt himself and demon- 
strate that there is a God in the earth who is higher than the highest 
and that he will make the invading army as chaff and stubble be- 
fore devouring fire, as dried and withered thorns, and as the burn- 
ing of lime. He then proclaims to those who were both near and 
far off — to near and distant regions, and to present and future ages, 
to hear what he had done, and to acknowledge his power. The 
sinners in Zion are afraid ; and they cry, u If ho shall dwell before 
this devouring fire, before which so vast an army is as chaff and 

* Isa. xxxiii : 14. 



m SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. I. 

sftibble ? Who among us shall dwell with these everlasting burnings 
which have made the Assyrians as the turning of lime 7 n In the fol- 
lowing verses God describes the glory and prosperity of Jerusalem 
enriched with the spoils of the Assyrian camp. This fact utterly 
excludes that interpretation which makes this passage a prediction 
of the destruction of Jerusalem ; and the passage rightly under- 
stood is a proof of everlasting punishment. It is the language of 
sinners in Zion, inferring the torments of everlasting fire from the 
terrors produced by the awful expressions of the divine displeas- 
ure exerted upon a mighty army of valiant men in the space of one 
night. 

" And many (or the multitudes,) of them that sleep in the dust of 
the earth, shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame 
and everlasting contempt"* The expressions of this passage must 
have great violence done to them before they can be applied to any 
thing else than the resurrection and the final judgment. It is objected, 
however, that this passage has reference to the destruction of Je- 
rusalem. But I have seen no authority quoted to show that to awake 
from a sleep inihe dust, is a proper phraseology to express the be- 
ing put to sleep in the dust, by the Roman sword. If it be said that 
a moral resurrection, which took place on the day of Pentecost, be 
here foretold, — and that those who continued to sleep on, at last 
awoke to shame and everlasting contempt in the national calamities 
that came upon the Jews in the destruction of their devoted city ; 
I would ask, what then were the glorious rewards, attained by those 
who rose to everlasting life, that were a suitable comparison to shin- 
ing as the brightness of the firmament and as the stars forever ? 
The only reward in this life which history records as received by 
Christians at that period was the glory of a hasty flight to the town of 
Pella. The Jews understood the passage before us, of the resur- 
rection of the dead at the end of time, and Christ seems to have 
had reference to it when he speaks of the resurrection of life, and 
of the resurrection of damnation. And we may suppose that it wavS 
in this passage that the Jews relied, who were said by St. Paul to 

* Dan.xii: 2 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 23 

expect a resurrection both of the just and of the unjust. To refer 
this passage to the resurrection, is perfectly natural and reasonable. 
For under the cruel persecution of Antiochus, some basely betray- 
ed their religion, while others bravely adhered to it. After the per- 
secution was over, the one could not be rewarded nor the other 
punished. This therefore would afford the true Christian satisfac- 
tion that they both would be recompensed according to their works 
at the resurrection and the last judgment. And the Apostle, speak- 
ing of the pious Jews who suffered martyrdom under Antiochus, 
tells us that though they were tortured, yet they would not renounce 
their religion to obtain deliverance, because they hoped to obtain 
this better resurrection. "It is better for thee to enter into life 
halt or maimed rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast 
into everlasting fire."* The absurdity of referring this passage to 
the destruction of Jerusalem or to any temporal calamity, has been 
shown in another Lecture, and we wait for reasons that have not 
been urged for believing that the everlasting fire means any limited 
punishment. The same remark will apply to other instances where 
this passage occurs in the Gospels. 

" Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the 

devil and his angels. And these shall go away into everlasting 

punishment."! I consider this passage to express the doctrine of 
endless misery. The original word translated punishment means 
torment, or suffering inflicted for crime. The noun is used but in 
one other instance in the New Testament. 1 John iv: 18. — w Fear 
hath torment." The verb from which the noun is derived, is twice 
used — Acts iv: 21. 2 Pet. ii: 9. In each of these passages it de- 
notes anguish, suffering, punishment It does not mean simply a 
state or condition, but absolute, positive suffering. In regard to the 
meaning of the word everlasting in this place, we observe that the 
literal meaning of it expresses absolute eternity ; and the plain and 
obvious interpretation of the word demands this signification. The 
word here used is the same in the original, as that used to express 
the eternal life of the righteous ; if one can be proved to be limited 
* Matt. jtYiii : 8. t Matt. \xr : 41, 46. 



24 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 1. 

in duration, the other can by the same arguments. The proofs, 
that the righteous will be happy forever, is the same and no other 
than that the wicked will be miserable forever. Now as the oris:- 
inal word is the same in both clauses, and as the contrast between 
punishment and life is carefully preserved, he must be blinded in 
no ordinary degree, who will risk the interests of his soul on inter- 
preting the same word temporary in one instance and eternal in 
another, of the same sentence, and in reference to the same gener- 
al subject, the future destiny of man. It has, however, been con- 
tended that the punishment of the wicked here spoken of, will have 
an end. This they argue from the difference of the two subjects, 
from the difference of the two substantives to which the adjective 
is applied, and from other passages to which they refer us as paral- 
lel, where the same word is used in the same text in a sense totally 
different. Whatever difference there may be, between the two sub- 
jects there is, as we have remarked, no more evidence that the 
punishment of the wicked will come to an end than that the happi- 
ness of the righteous shall have an end. Whatever difference there 
may be between the two substantives, punishment and life, the adjec- 
tive everlasting is applied to both and this so far as an antithesis 
can go to fix its meaning determines the word everlasting to mean 
the same when applied to punishment as when applied to life. I 
admit that in Hab. iii : 6, the same word is used in the same sentence 
in a different sense. But this passage is not parallel with the pas- 
sage under consideration, for there is no such antithesis in that as 
in this. It has been thought by some that the everlasting ways of 
God denote the operations of his providence, by which the mighty 
potentates of Canaan were broken to pieces and their kingdoms 
totally subdued, and that the term everlasting in both instances is 
expressive merely of limited duration. But admitting that the 
everlasting ways of God are opposed to the everlasting hills, or that 
the former signifies absolute eternity while the latter denotes lim- 
ted duration, still the antithesis and the subject direct us in this 
case to give them such an exposition; whereas in our text they 
direct us to the contrary. Our text is parallel to John v : 29, " Some 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. So 

shall come forth to the resurrection of life and some to the resurrec- 
tion of damnation ;" and we might with as much propriety contend 
for two entirely different meanings to the word resurrection in the 
one case as to the word everlasting in the other. But as this pas- 
sage before us will be further noticed in a subsequent lecture, I shall 
make no further remarks upon it. 

" But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never 
forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation."* This will be 
considered in a future lecture. We shall therefore omit giving any 
comments upon it for the present. It is so plain and pointed that it 
needs no comment — "to never have forgiveness" is equivalent to 
endless condemnation. "Who shall be punished with everlasting 
destruction from the presence of the Lord and the glory of his 
power. v f It is manifest that in this instance everlasting must apply 
to something beyond this life. The apostle is comforting the Thes- 
salonians under their afflictions and persecutions which they suffer- 
ed during the cruel reign of Nero and Domitian. They were di- 
rected to look forward to the final judgment, when both the believ- 
er's rest, and the recompense of the wicked will be consummated. 
They were directed to look forward to that u rest which remaineth 
for the people of God," which they would experience at the resur- 
rection of the just, — when their persecutors and the heathen who 
do not acknowledge God, but worship idols, and all who do not 
believe the gospel of Jesus Christ, shall experience an everlast- 
ing destruction from the presence of the Lord and the glory of his 
power, ministered by the same hand that consummates the rest of 
the righteous. The time when this righteous recompense is to be 
made, 13 at the revelation of the righteous judgments of God, for 
then will he judge the world in righteousness. Now the heavens 
will retain or conceal Christ till the period of the last judgment. 
Then will he be revealed, so this recompense cannot be prior to the 
last judgment. The misery of those who are punished will run par- 
allel with the line of eternity. Their destruction will not be the 
annihilation of their conscious being, but of their well-being. 

♦Markiii; 29. f 2 Thess. i; 9. 

C 



26 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. L 

" And the angels, which kept not their first estate, but left their 
own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains, under dark- 
ness, unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Go- 
morrah, and the cities about them in like manner giving themselves 
over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for 
an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire."* It has been 
objected that the fire of hell or eternal fire, is not here meant, for the 
following reasons : First, Peter mentions thecase of Sodom and Go- 
morrah, but says nothing respecting their going to hell — but this 
does not prove that Jude has not. Shall we reject the testimony of 
one inspired writer because all have not testified in the same words 
to the same point? Again, it is objected that Sodom and Gomorrah 
were set forth as an example, if the example were in a future state, 
for an example must be visible to be of any effect. But cannot a 
fact which is known by sufficient testimony affect us as an example, 
unless we witness the fact with our own eyes ? If so, the example 
of Christ can be no example to us. The testimony of the passage 
then remains unimpaired. In the passage we have a recital of the 
former judgments of God upon sinners with a design to awaken 
those to whom warning is given in the Epistles. The apostle re- 
minds them of the fall of the angels who kept not their original of- 
fice, but forfeited it by some mibbehavior. They left their proper 
station, rebelled against their Creator and Sovereign Lord, and 
thought to have usurped the throne of Omnipotence. Hence God 
drove them out of Heaven, notwithstanding their power and num- 
bers, and reserved them ever since, in everlasting chains of 
confinement, under darkness, unto the judgment of the great day 
to be punished. The design of introducing the fall of angels in 
this connection is to show how impossible it is for those who rebel 
against God, to effect their escape. Are angels reserved, and shall 
sinful man escape ! In illustrating the same point, the apostle also 
introduces Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them who 
are set forth as an example of that terrible punishment which is to 
be inflicted on the wicked at the general judgment, having under* 

* Jude C, 7. 



Lect. 1.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 27 

rrone the punishment of an eternal fire, a fire whose effects will ba 
eternal. Thus will all the ungodly be punished with eternal fire at 
the general judgment — the consideration of which should lead them 
to speedy repentance. This I conceive to be the import and design 
of this passage. 

" These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a 
tempest, to whom the mist of darkness is reserved forever."* The 
persons spoken of in the context are false teachers who privily in- 
troduce destructive heresies, denying even the Lord who bought 
them, — who bring upon themselves swift destruction, — whose pun- 
ishment threatened of old iingereth not, and whose destruction 
slumbereth not, — whom the Lord will keep in ward to the day of 
judgment to be punished, — as he spared not the angels who sinned, 
but with chains of darkness confining them in Tartarus, delivered 
them over to judgment, and as he did not spare the old world, and 
as he punished the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. After heaping 
upon them a number of opprobrious epithets he adds for whom tht 
mist of darkness is reserved forever. Surely there is nothing in 
these epithets that would lead us to conclude that their punishment 
was some temporal calamity only. The blackness of darkness sig- 
nifies a state of disconsolate misery. Here it denotes the punish- 
ment of the wicked after the judgment, which our Lord also has 
represented by being cast into outer darkness.^ Should any one 
however contend that this punishment ot the false teachers was ex- 
perienced in this life, he is required to show in what historical fact 
they experienced temporal calamities that were fitly represented by 
the mists of darkness forever, and by the casting down to hell the 
angels that sinned. 

" And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever.'t 
" And they said Alleluiah, and her smoke rose up forever andever."| 
" And the devil that deceived them was cast into a lake of fire and 
brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are and shall be 

* 2 Pet. ii: 17. f Matt, viii : 12. % Rev. xiv : 11. || Rot. xix : 3. 



28 SCRIPTURE PROOFS, &c. (Lect. 1. 

tormented c(ay and night forever and ever,"* It is objected that 
"these passages have respect to punishment in a future state of ex- 
istence." But no reason is assigned why we may not understand 
them as a proof of everlasting punishment in the world to come. 
They have been so understood by our ablest and best divines, and 
no comments of my own upon them will render the grand truth 
they exhibit more manifest. I have now finished the examination 
of the particular passages in which these words and phrases are 
found in application to punishment. I shall therefore proceed to 
lay before you a concise view of the forms ot speech in which end- 
less punishment is taught in language equally explicit as in the 
terms everlasting, eternal, forever, and forever and ever. Rut these 
we shall reserve for consideration in a future lecture. 



MBCTURE II- 

SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED 

Johniii: 36, — He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: 
and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life ; but the wrath 
of God abideth on him. 

Sense and reason cannot make' as acquainted with any thing in 
the great concerns of eternity. It is hence evident that if we be- 
come at all conversant with the realities of the tuture world, it must 
be through some medium wholly distinct from those by which we 
become conversant with the things of the present world. Reason 
and sense, in this case, can be of no avail. They soon find a limit 
to their powers, and set down bewildered and exhausted. What we 
need in this situation is, '• the substance of things hoped for and the 
evidence of things not seen." We want a hand which can lift the 
veil and show us the things which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, 
and of which the heart of man has formed no conception. The 
faith which is produced by the Holy Spirit of promise, supplies our 
manifold defects in reference to these things. It is like the teles- 
cope to the natural eye, — it brings near in their real magnitude, im- 
portance, and proportion, the objects of the invisible world. It in- 
troduces us into the heaven of heavens, unlocks the mystery and 
unfolds the book of seven seals. 

Such a faith implies a right temper of heart, and is connected 

with eternal life. To exercise this faith in reality, is to rely upon 

the testimony of God. It is cordially to credit the account which 

God has given of himself, of ourselves, of sin in its nature, effects, 

and consequences, of Christ, of earth, heaven, and hell. This faith, 
c* 



30 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 2. 

is not an assent of the understanding only, but of the passions, will, 
and affections. Belief is expressly said to be with the heart. "If 
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in 
thine heart, that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be 
saved." " With the heart, man believeth unto righteousness." " If 
thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest." 

A lifeless, tame, unmeaning assent, will avail nothing but to mock 
God, and increase our guilt and condemnation. To believe in Christ 
is to confide in him, rely upon him, and trust to his merits and prom- 
ises for salvation. It is to go to him as a lost and ruined sinner, un- 
done as to any help in ourselves, or in any created arm, — to act to- 
wards him as the Saviour of lost men, and to look to him only for 
salvation. God has wisely ordered, that the reception of Christ, 
should be the turning point of salvation. Those who thus believe 
have everlasting life. They are in possession of that which is a 
recovery from spiritual death, and which shall result in eternal life 
in heaven. Heaven is begun on earth. Piety is the same in kind 
here, that it will be there ; only it will here be purified, expanded, 
and perfected. It is here life begun, that will be matured in the 
full and perfect bliss of heaven. 

But he that has not this evangelical faith, shall not see life. He 
shall never enjoy true- happiness in this world nor in the world to 
come. He shall never enter the kingdom of heaven. The wrath 
of God, or his opposition to sin in its fruits and effects in this and 
the coming world, abideth on him. This implies that the unbeliev- 
er is now under the wrath of God. It implies also that it will al- 
ways remain upon him. It will remain or abide there as its proper 
dwelling-place. Now since every avenue into the kingdom of 
heaven, and every way of escaping the wrath of God are closed, 
except by the Lord Jesus Christ, those who will not believe must 
enter the world of spirits as they are ; and there they must re- 
ceive the wages of sin, reap the fruit of their doings, and bear un- 
pitieil and alone all that God may choose to inflict as the expression 

' Ms sense of sin. Such is the miserable condition of the sinner, 
they will not come unto Christ that they might have life. They 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 31 

will not believe the record that God has given of his Son. They 
choose to remain in this state and encounter all that is fearful and 
dreadful in the wrath of Almighty God, rather than come to Christ 
who has died to save sinners, and who will bless and save eternally 
all who believe in him. Dire infatuation ! How does sin blind the 
minds of them who do not believe ! But why this neglect and un- 
willingness to believe in Christ ? It is owing to the want of a right 
disposition of heart. Many of the truths of the Scriptures are so 
contrary to the pride and lusts of the natural heart, and demand 
such a sacrifice of prejudices and passions, that the wicked will not 
believe them ; and to quiet their consciences, they, however dis- 
cordant their doctrines in other respects, embrace a scheme of re- 
ligious faith, the tendency of which is to diminish the sinner's tear 
of the divine displeasure, and remove his expectation of endless 
punishment. But when the light of this fact darts her rays into the 
dark mind of the sinner, he is disturbed ; hence he assails this doc- 
trine and endeavors to disprove it. And he is very apt to conclude 
that if he can show that the terms " everlasting," " eternal," " for- 
ever," and "forever and ever," are sometimes used to denote a lim- 
ited duration, they entirely overthrow the doctrine of the endless 
punishment of the wicked. But this consolation, like their hope, 
rests upon a foundation of sand. Strong and even decisive as I 
think the argument is, which is derived from these, I am far from 
Delieving that they furnish the only, or even the chief source of 
evidence in support of the doctrine we are endeavoring to establish. 
There are other passages which convey the idea of unlim- 
ited duration, (if it can be conveyed by human language), and 
there are many forms of speech in which I conceive the eternity of 
future punishment is expressed not less decisively than in the terms 
we noticed in the preceding Lecture. In proof of this, I remark, 
II. That the endless punishment of the wicked is taught 

IN AX.L THOSE PASSAGES WHICH DESCRIBE THE FUTURE STATES OF 

men in contrast. " Men of this world who have their portion in 
this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure : as for 
me, I will behold thy face in righteousness : I shall be satisfied when 



32 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 2. 

I awake in \hj likeness.- The hope of the righteous shall be 

gladness, but the expectation of the wicked shall perish. -The 

wicked is driven away in his wickedness ; but the righteous hath 

hope in his death.- 1 have seen the wicked in great power, and 

spreading himself like a green bay tree : yet he passed away, and 

lo, he was not; yea I sought him, but he would not be found. 

Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that 
man is peace. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together ; (he 
end of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall be in ever- 
lasting remembrance. The desire of the wicked shall perish. 

Say ye to the righteous, it shall be well with them, for they shall 

eat of the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked ! It shall 

be ill with him, for the reward of his hands shall be given him. 

And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall- awake, 
some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting con- 

tempt. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous 

and the wicked ; between him that serveth God, and him that serv- 

eth him not. He will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his 

wheat into the garner ; but he will burn up the chaff with unquench- 
able fire. Enter ye in at the strait gate : for wide is the gate, 

and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there 
be which go in thereat : because strait is the gate and narrow 

is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 

Not every one that saith Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom 
of heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in 

heaven. Many shall come from the east, and west, and shall sit 

down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven : 
but the children of the kingdom shall be cast into outer darkness, 

there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. The field is the 

world ; the tares are the children of the wicked one : the enemy 
that sowed them is the devil : the harvest is the end of the world : 
the reapers are the, angels, — as therefore the tares are gathered and 
burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of the world. The Son 
of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his 
kingdom all things (or scandals) that offend, and them which do in- 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 33 

iquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire : there shall be 
wailing and gnashing of teeth. — Then shall the righteous shine forth 

as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Again: the kingdom of 

heaven is like a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every 
kind : which when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and 
gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at 
the end of the world. The angels shall come forth and sever the 
wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of 

fire : there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. And while 

they went to buy, the bridegroom came ; and they that were ready 
went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut. After- 
ward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 
But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 

For the time is come, that judgment must begin at the house of 

God ; and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that 
obey not the gospel of God ? And if the righteous scarcely 

be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear ? Well 

done, thou good and faithful servant : thou hast been faithful over 
a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things : enter thou 
into the joy of thy Lord. And cast ye the unprofitable ser- 
vant into outer darkness ; there shall be weeping and gnashing of 

teeth. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his 

Lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due 
season ? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord, when he cometh, 
shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him 
ruler over all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in 
his heart, My lord delayeth his coming ; and shall begin to smite his 
fellow-servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken ; the lord of 
that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and 
in an hour that he is- not aware of. And shall cut him asunder, and 
appoint him his portion with the hypocrites ; there shall be weeping 

and gnashing of teeth. Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit 

the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 
Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the 
devil and his angels. And these shall go away into everlasting 
punishment but the righteous into life eternal. He thatbelieveth* 



34 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 0, 

and is baptized, shall be saved ; but be that believeth not shall be 

damned. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life ; and 

he that believeth not the Son shall not see life ; but the wrath of 
God abideth on him. Therefore -whosoever heareth these say- 
ings of mine, and doeth them, I will 'liken him unto a wise man, 
which built his house upon a rock ; and the rain descended, and the 
floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house and it 
fell not : for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that hear- 
eth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto 
a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand ; and the rain 
descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon 
that house, and it fell : and great was the fall of it. Son, remem- 
ber that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and like- 
wise Lazarus evil things ; but now he is comforted, and thou art 
tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a 
great gulf fixed ; so that they which would pass from hence to you 
cannot ; neither can they pass to us that would come from thence. 

Marvel not at this ; the hour is coming, in the which all that 

are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth ; they 
that have done good, unto the resurrection of life ; and they that 

have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. Blessed are 

ye poor : for yours is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye that 
hunger now : for ye shall be rilled. Blessed are ye that weep now : 
for ye shall laugh. Blessed are ye when men shall hate you, and 
when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach 
you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. 
Rejoice ye in that day and leap for joy : for, behold, your reward is 
great in heaven. But woe unto you that are rich ! for ye have re- 
ceived your consolation. Hath not the potter power over the 

clay, of the same lump, to make one vessel unto honor and another 
unto dishonor ? What if God, willing to show his wrath, and make 
his power known, endured with much long suffering the vessels of 
wrath fitted to destruction ; and that he might make known tho 
riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy which he had afore pre- 
pared unto glory ? The Lord knoweth them that are his. But in 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 35 

a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but 
also of wood and of earth ; and some to honor and some to dishonor. 
If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel 
unto honor. Be not deceived ; God is not mocked ; for whatsoev- 
er a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to 
hi3 flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption ; but he that soweth to 

the spirit, shall of the spirit reap life e/erlasting. That which 

beareth thorns and briars, is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing ; 
whose end is to be burned. But, beloved, we are persuaded better 
things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus 

speak. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they 

may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the 
gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whore- 
mongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and 

maketh a lie.- He that overcometh shall inherit all things ; and I 

will be his God and he shall be my son. But the feartul, and unbe- 
lieving, and the abominable, ana murderers, and whoremongers, and 
sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake 
which burnetii with fire and brimstone : which is the second death. 

He that is unjust let him be unjust still ; and he which is filthy 

let him be filthy still ; and he that is righteous let him be righteous 
still ; and he that is holy let him be holy still."* 

These passages which I have now quoted, I consider as designed 
to express the final destiny of both the righteous and the wicked. 
That they do express the final conditions of men, their endless hap- 
piness or miser}', will appear from the following considerations. It 
is very generally admitted by those who deny the doctrine of end- 
less punishment, that there will be no successive duration to the 
righteous ; that when they leave this world they enter upon a final 

* Ps. xvii. 14, 15. Prov. x. 28.— xiv. 32. Ps. xxxvii. 35— 38.— cxiL 6—10. 
Isa. Hi. 10, 11. Dan. xii. 2. Mat. iii. IS. Mat. iii. 12. Luke iii". 17. Mat- 
vii. 13, 14, 21.— viii. 11, 12. — xiii. 38—43. Mat. Xiii. 47-50. Mat. xxv. 10 
—12. „Pet. iv. 17, IS. Mat. xxv, 21, 30. Mat. xxiv. 45— 51. Mat. xxr. 
34,41.-46. Mark xvi.16. John iii. 36- Mat. vii. 24— 27. Luke xvi. 25, 
26. Johnv.2S, 29. Luke vi. 22, 24. Rom. ix, 21—23. 2 Tim. ii. 19— 21. 
Gal. vi. 7, 8. Heb. vi. 8, 9. Rev. xxii, 14, 15,— xxi. 7, 8. Rot. xxii. 1L 



36 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 2. 

and everlasting state of happiness. But were it generally denied, 
this denial would not invalidate the divine testimonv. Nothing can 
be more evident than the fact that the inspired writers of both the 
Old and New Testament had a belief in the doctrine of a future 
state and a hope of en joy in gits felicities immediately after the ter- 
mination of their earthly pilgrimage. They speak decisively of 
their expectation of it; and of the consolation the prospect afforded 
them under their sufferings. And they have exhibited this doctrine 
as a ground of consolation to all true believers. Now it must be 
manifest to every student of the Bible that this final state of the 
righteous is here presented in strong and pointed contrast with the 
future state of the wicked. If this state of the wicked was not of 
course final, it would not, in such a number of instances, and in 
such a variety of forms of expression, be contrasted with the final 
state of the righteous. In this case it would not be a contrast' 
But in the passages above quoted there is precisely the same proof 
that the wicked will be miserable forever, that there is that the 
righteous will be happy forever. If one can be proved to be unlim- 
ited in duration, the other can by the same arguments. These rep- 
resentations are not merely convincing, they are overwhelming 
These eternal states exert a reciprocal influence, in showing forth 
the glory of heaven and the misery of hell. 

Again, no one of these passages give any intimation of any other 
state folloiving this, in which they present in contrast the happiness 
of the righteous and the misery of the wicked. Were not the 
present a term of probation for the rewards of eternity ; and were 
not the soul capable of exerting its powers and faculties in a state 
of separation from the. body ; and did it not immediately on leaving 
the body enter into a state of happiness or misery ; and were the 
punishment of the wicked of limited duration only, and designed as 
a kind of discipline to correct their evil dispositions and vicious hab- 
its ; and were all men to be eventually restored to purity and happi- 
ness we should have expected that something like this would have 
been intimated when the future states of men are described. But 
nothing like this occurs in any of the foregoing passages, nor in 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 37 

any other. And shall we presume to build a theory of religious 
truth upon the mere silence of revelation ? Shall we presume to 
advance as a doctrine of the Bible a sentiment, for the support of 
which we have neither precept nor example ? 

But once more : The phraseology of the foregoing passages, or 
of a greater part of them, is inconsistent with any other state follow- 
ing that which they describe. On the supposition that salvation had 
been appointed as the ultimate portion of all men ; then the men 
of this world had not had their portion in this life, but would equally 
with the righteous behold the face of God in righteousness, and be 
satisfied in his likeness. Their expectation of a glorious immortality 
would not perish, but end in gladness ; and though driven away in 
their wickedness, yet they would have hope in their death, and this 
hope would not prove illusive. Though transgressors shall be de- 
stroyed, and the end of the wicked cut off, yet their end shall be 
peace as well as that of the perfect and upright man. The desire of 
the wicked for endless bliss, shall not perish, but be gratified. 
Though it is said that some of the multitudes who sleep in the dust 
of the earth shall awake to everlasting life, and others to shame and 
everlasting contempt, and though the antithesis determines the word 
everlasting to mean the same when applied to shame and contempt 
as when applied to life ; yet on the hypothesis which we are oppos- 
ing, the wicked who sleep in the dust of the earth shall eventually 
awake to everlasting life equally with the righteous. The broad 
way, our Saviour tells us, leadeth to destruction. Now if he believ- 
ed and taught the final salvation of all men, would he not have hon- 
estly told his hearers that there is no way to destruction (or divine 
punishment after death), and that, of course, none are in danger of 
going there ; and instead of saying strait is the gate and narrow is the 
way that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it, would he not 
have declared the more cheering and benevolent idea that the gate of 
heaven is wide and that all will eventually^td it ? On this principle 
all shall enter the kingdom of heaven, whether they do, or do not the 
will of God. The tares will not be gathered and bound in bundles 
tto be burned, but will be changed into wheat, and gathered into the 

J) 



33 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect.£ 

barn. Those who offend and do iniquity shall shine forth in the 
kingdom of God as well as the righteous. The cursed as well as 
the blessed shall inherit the kingdom of God, which, by the way, was 
also prepared for them from the foundation of the world. They 
shall not go away into everlasting punishment but into life eternal. 
Those who believe not in Christ shall not perish, but have everlast- 
ing life as well as those who believe in him. On this principle, to 
come forth to the resurrection of damnation is the same as to come 
forth to the resurrection of life. Those who have received their 
consolation in this life, and on whom the Son of man hath pronoun- 
ced a woe, will share in his beatitudes and receive a great and glo- 
rious reward in heaven. Though the sinner reap corruption, as the 
fruit of his sowing to the flesh, yet that corruption shall not be the 
opposite of everlasting life, since it will issue in it. Though they 
bear briers and thorns, yet their end is not to be burned, but to ob- 
tain salvation. Whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all 
liars, shall not have their part in the lake which burnetii with fire 
and brimstone, but shall inherit all things, and shall have equal right 
to the tree of life with those who obey the commandments of God. 
Thus we see, that the phraseology of the foregoing passages is in- 
consistent with any other state following that which they describe. 
From these considerations, it appears that these passages are de- 
signed to express the final state of men. If so, they in effect ex- 
press the endless punishment of the wicked : for if the description 
here given of the portion of the wicked, denotes their final state, 
there is no possibility of another state succeeding it. And this 
truth the sacred Oracles invariably teach. They represent man as 
being placed in this world on trial for the rewards of eternity, and 
that he will here receive that impress of character which will re- 
main forever. It is on this ground that the spirit of inspiration 
urges us to do with our might ivhat our hand Jlndeth to do, and as- 
sures us that the night comeih wherein no man can work. If our pres- 
ent character will have no influence on our future destiny, why this 
preparation ? why this discipline of our moral nature ? why this 
moulding our hearts to sobriety and devotion ? why our Saviour's 
tears over his incorrigible enemies ? why the solicitude of the apostles 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 39 

for the salvation of men ? and why the joy of angels over repenting 
sinners ? The Scriptures invariably express and imply, that at the 
winding up of all earthly scenes, the final states of men will be 
unalterably fixed. — " Ke that is unjust let him be unjust still ; and 
he which is filthy let him be filthy still ; and he that is righteous let 
him be righteous still ; and he that is holy let him be holy still." 
All who contend for a successive duration acknowledge that there 
will be a period when the states of all rational creatures will be 
fixed forever. This period I conceive to be at death, but if it be 
not till after the last judgment, those that are then unholy and filthy 
must remain so still. There will be no change in their character. 
The Psalmist asks in language which implies a strong negation, 
" Wilt thou show wonders to the dead ? Shall the dead arise and 
praise thee ? Shall thy loving kindness be declared in the grave, 
or thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness ?" Those then 
who enter the future state in an unholy character, must retain that 
character forever ; and of course must be excluded from heaven, 
for " nothing unclean shall he admitted there ; without holiness no man 
shall see the Lord ; and except a man he horn again he cannot see the 
kingdom of God" The scriptures have in no single instance given 
us the most remote hint, that God> will ever vouchsafe his mercy 
and grace to those who die in their sins, or that he will annihilate 
his rebellious creatures ; but every thing warrants the opposite con- 
clusion. Consequently the allotments of the righteous and the 
wicked will be as far asunder as heaven and hell, as unlike as end- 
less joy and endless sorrow. 

Whoever then hopes to enter heaven without a preparation for it 
in the present life, will meet with an awful disappointment. 

" Pure are the joys, above the sky, 

And all the region peace ; 
No wanton lips, nor envious eye, 

Can see, or taste the bliss. 

Those holy gates forever bar 

Pollution, sin, and shame ; 
N®ne shall obtain admittance there, 

Bui followers of the Lamb." 



40 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF . (Le#*. f. 

Nor let it be imagined that God will interpose at the hour of death 
and by an exertion of his power and benevolence destroy the prin- 
ciples of sin, and take the wicked up to the joys of heaven. Such 
an inference in every individual case would imply a continued mira- 
cle, and would subvert the established order of the divine govern- 
ment; as it would supercede the necessity of all those moraHn- 
structions and moral preparations which God has appointed for ren- 
dering his people ' fc meet for the inheritance of the saints in light ; n 
and would prevent the moral renovation of the world which is now 
being gradually effected by the combined exertions of those who 
are the " light of the world," and the " salt of the earth." It is 
true the mercy of God is infinite, and no abandoned sinner need 
despair while he remains within the confines of the present state. 
But if he pass from time to eternity under the power of revengeful 
and depraved passions, he has no ground to hope that he will ever 
afterwards be admitted to the felicity of heaven. He must go away 
into everlasting punishment. 

I remark : 

III. That the punishment of the wicked in the future 

WORLD, IS SOMETIMES SPOKEN OF IN THE SCRIPTURES BY A NEGA- 
TIVE FORM OF EXPRESSION ; AND THEN THE IDEA CONVEYED IS f 
THAT IT WILL BE ENDLESS. 

"Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy 
fehall be forgiven unto men ; but the blasphemy against the Holy 
Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a 
word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him : but whoso- 
ever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall never be forgiven 

him neither in this world, neither in the world to come. Between 

us and you there is a great gulf fixed : so that they which would 
pass from hence to you cannot ; neither can they pass to us that 

would come from thence. He that believeth not the Son, shall 

not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him. 1 go my way, 

and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins : whither I go, ye 

cannot come. Be not deceived : neither fornicators, nor idolaters, 

nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with, man- 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 41 

kind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor ex- 
tortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. Now the works of 

the flesh are manifest, which are these ; adultery, fornication, un- 
cleanliness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, 
emulations, strife, wrath, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, 
drunkenness, reveliings, and such like : of the which I tell you be- 
fore, as I have told you in time past, that they which do such things 

shall not inherit the kingdom of God. He that showed no mercy 

shall have judgment without mercy. Without holiness no man 

shall see the Lord. And shall utterly perish in their own corruption. 

That which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, As there- 
fore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in 
the end of the world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, 
and they shall gather out of his kingdom, ail things that offend, and 
them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire. 

There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. -Blessed are they 

that have right unto the tree of life. For without are dogs, and 
sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and 

whosoever ioveth and maketh a lie. And if any man shall take 

away from the weds of the book of this prophecy, God shall take 
away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and 
from the things which are written in this book."* 

A multitude of other passages might be adduced which expressly 
assert, that the wicked shall suffer a final and everlasting privation. 
But those which I have now cited are sufficient for our present. pur- 
pose. When the divine authority of the Scriptures is recognized, 
a single assertion is sufficient to determine the truth of any fact, or 
the reality of any doctrine. 

This negative form of expression is often used in the Bible to 
denote the eternity of the Divine existence — Thy years shall have 
no end \ the eternity of the Redeemer's kingdom: his dominion is 
an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away ; and the endless 

* Matt. xii. 31, 32. Luke xvi. 26. John iii. 36.— viii. 21 . 1 Cor. y'u 9, 
10. Gal. v. 19—21, James ii. 13. Heb. xii. 14, 2 Pet. ii. 12. Hcb. vi . £* 
Matt. xiii. 40. Rev. xxii, 14. Rev. xxh. 19. 



42 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. £ 

duration of the happiness of the saints : a crown of glory that fadeth 
not away ; a kingdom that cannot be moved ; an inheritance that fadeth 
not away. May it not then prove with equal clearness, that the fu- 
ture punishment ot the wicked will be endless ? If allffuture good 
is denied to the wicked ; if those who blaspheme against the Holy 
Ghost, shall not have forgiveness to all eternity, but shall be sub- 
jected to endless damnation ; if some shall not see 3ife f but the 
wrath of God dbideth on them ; if those who die in their sins, are 
never to come where Christ is p4f those who are guilty of commit- 
ting such acts, as are enumerated by the apostle among the works 
of the ftesh, shall not inherit the kingdom of God ; if their end is de- 
struction ; and their portion, judgment without mercy ; then unques- 
tionably a portion of mankind will fail of salvation, and be finally 
lost. To be excluded from all future good, comprises a reprobation 
that is final. Do not, my impenitent hearers, think lightly of such 
an exclusion ! How should this awaken in you the deepest anxiety^ 
to think of an eternal separation from God and heaven ! How 
eb'ufd you bear to hear the voice of your Sovereign Judge pronounce 
the sentence upon you, Depart ye cursed ! Think not that you may 
resign the hope of heaven, and yet reckon upon some lower felicity 
that will meet your expectations and satisfy your desires. In this 
case, there is no wide range of objects amid which you may make 
your choice. The objects of choice are only two. If you consent 
to forego the bliss of heaven, you must endure the pains of hell 
forever. If you seek a substitute for heaven — hell is the only 
alternative. 

I remark, 

IV. That the endless punishmemt of the wicked is assert- 
ed by implication; or by forms of speech which imply this 
doctrine. All the doctrines and precepts, invitations and com- 
mands, promises and threatenings of the Bible, imply rewards to 
the righteous, and punishment to the wicked. All the expressions 
of love and favor to the righteous, imply hatred and wrath to the 
wicked. The argument from this source deserves, and I hope it 
will receive your candid and serious attention. When it is said 3 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS P0NISHMENT. 43 

that "The men of this world have their portion in this life,"* is it 
not implied that there is no portion tor them in the future life : that 
their portion and enjoyment are confined to this life ? 

"Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his 
house is increased ; for when he dieth he shall carry nothing away ; ; 
his glory shall not descend after him—- though while he lived he 
blessed his soul. He shall go to the generation of his fathers ; they 
shall never see lighL"f 

" I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the 
wicked. — Until I went into the sanctuary of God ; then understood 
I their end. Surely thou didst set them in slippery places. Thou 
castedst them down into destruction."): This destruction was not 
the death of the body, nor any temporal calamity. For the myste- 
ry of Divine Providence, of which the Psalmist had been speaking* 
was, that the wicked were in prosperity all their days, that they had 
more than heart coidd wish, and that there were no bands in their 
death. Their being cast down to destruction, and being utterly con- 
sumed with terrors, must refer to something which takes place after 
death. 

When it is said that "God so loved the world that he gave 
his onry begotton Son, that whosoever believeih on him should not 
perish but have everlasting Z(/e,"ll is it not implied that those who 
do not believe shall perish, and that thus to perish, being the oppo- 
site of everlasting life, must be equivalent to endless misery ? 

"I pray for them, I pray not for the world."** There is then a 
world of people for whom Jesus did not pray. We are not to sup- 
pose that the term world, refers simply to all wicked men, for Christ 
prayed "that the world may believe that thou hast sent me," and 
on the cross he prayed for his crucifiers, and murderers ; nor does 
the term refer to the Gentiles in distinction from the Jews, but to 
the non-elect as opposed to the elect. For them, Christ in his ever- 
prevalent intercession, does not pray. He intercedes only for those 
who should believe on him, and were given to him in the covenant 

* Psalm Xvii. 14. f Psalm xlix. 16—19. $ Psalm lxxiii. 3, 17, 18. 
II John iii. 16. ** John xvii. 9. 



C4 - SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 2. 

of redemption. If there are some then for whom Christ does not 
pray, there are of course some who will not share in the benefits of 
his mediation, without a participation in which they cannot be sav- 
ed. Harmonizing- with tills idea is 1 John v. Vo. "If a man see 
his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he 
shall give him life for a sin which is not unto death. There is a 
sin unto death. I do say that he shall not pray far it." By the sin 
unto death, we are to understand a sin obstinately continued in and 
never repented of, the punishment of which is to end in his eter- 
nal death. But why not pray for those who commit this sin it their 
salvation be possible, nay certain? Does God forbid his people to 
pray for those whom he is willing to admit to his heavenly kingdom ? 
If their salvation be possible,! presume no suiticient reason can be 
given why we should not pray for it: 

""And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a 
certain rich man brought forth plentifully: and he thought within 
himself, saying*, What shall I do, because I have no room where to 
bestow my fruits ? And he said, This will I do : I will pull down 
my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits 
and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much 
goods laid up for many years ; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be 
merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool ! this night thy soul shall 
be required of thee: then whose shall those thing:- be, which thou 
hast provided ? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is 
not rich towards God. 5 ** From this instructive parable, we learn 
the folly of providing a large superfluity for a future continuance on 
earth, to the neglect of making provision for the world to come, in- 
to which we may be immediately hurried, and where we must 
exist forever. But if all .are to be finally saved, wherein was that 
man a fool for placing his affections and dependence for happiness 
on his abundant earthly portion^ to the neglect of being rich to- 
wards God ? On that supposition, he would be just as sure of be- 
ing rich towards God forever as he would, if he had not loved, and 
idolized his earthly treasures. On the supposition of the salvation 

* Luke xii. 16—21. 



Lect.2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 45 

of all men, the rich do byno means receive their consolation in this 
life, but they are to receive infinitely the greatest consolation in the 
future life. 

"Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth and been wanton ; ye' 
have nourished your hearts as in the day of slaughter ; ye have 
condemned and killed the just, and "he doth not resist you. Be pa- 
tient, therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord.''* Here is 
a tremendous implication of punishment, coming upon the rich men 
who oppress the poor. They were bid to weep and cry bitterly, on 
account of the miseries that were coming upon them, when the Lord; 
should come and give them the due reward of their deeds. 

"Woe unto you that are rich, for you have received your consola- 
tion."! Does not this imply that there is no more consolation for 
them hereafter ? If not, how could they have received the conso- 
lation which they had sought, and which they had had reason to ex- 
pect? And why was a wo pronounced upon them ? 

" For yourselves know perfectly, that the day of the Lord Com- 
eth as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace,, and 
safety, — then, sudden destruction cometh upon them ; and they 
shall not esc ape. "i The apostle is referring his brethren to the par- 
ticular season at which Christ will come to judgment. He- told 
them that they knew thafrhis second coming would be sudden and 
unexpected, and would occasion great consternation to the wicked. 
He also assured his brethren, that the destruction which would then 
come upon the ungodly, would admit of no escape, or remedy. 
They shall not escape the terrible judgment and punishment of thafe 
dread day of the Lord. Does not this imply an infliction of God's- 
anger, which will last as long as their existence ? 

If repentance be absolutely necessary in order to salvation, and 
if it be impossible to convert to the saving faith of the gospel, those 
who after being made acquainted with all the proofs by which God 
had thought tit to establish Christ's mission, should think him an 
impostor and renounce his gospel :|| then there are some whose sal- 

* James v , 5, 6. f Luka vi. 24. i 1 Thcss. v. 2 5 3. || Heb. vi, 4— <k 



dG SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Legt. % 

vation is impossible — since it is impossible to renew such to repent- 
ance, it is impossible that they should be saved. 

" If we sin wilfully, after that we have received the knowledge 
of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins ; but a cer- 
tain fearful looking" for of judgment, and fiery indignation, which 
shall devour the adversaries."'* Now if there be no more, or no 
longer, a sacrifice for the sin of those who with a full and fixed res- 
olution despise and reject Christ, the only Saviour ; despise and re- 
ject the Holy Spirit, the only sanctifier ; and despise and renounc-e 
the only way of salvation ; and who do this with an obstinate and 
malicious intent, after they have known and professed the Christian 
religion ; this must be the same thing as the sacrifice offered by 
Christ which is the only medium of a sinner's salvation being of no 
saving effect, because the death of Christ was not appointed to ex- 
piate such a sin, and because it is never repented of, and there be- 
ing no sacrifice, and no repentance, there can be no satisfaction, 
and consequently no pardon ; else a fearful looking for of judg- 
ment and fiery indignation would not be the inevitable doom cf 
these wilful adversaries of God. And if the judgment and fiery 
indignation, which shall devour the adversaries, remain for them, 
they must suffer without a probability of escape. 

" Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into 
the kingdom of heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my Father 
which is in heaven. Many will say unto me in that day, Lord, 
Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name ? and in thy name have 
cast out devils ? and in thy name done many wonderful works ? 
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you : Depart from 
me ye that work iniquity."! The day here referred to must mean 
the last day, the day of judgment, the tim3 when the pretenders to 
prophecy and piety will be judged and rewarded. It appears, 
from this whole passage, that many after having made great attain- 
ments, and great professions in religious life, will not enter heaven 
but will be addressed by a— Depart from me. But suppose the 

* IIeb. x. 26, 27. t Matt. vii. 21, 22, 23. 



Lsct. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 47 

phrase, Kingdom of God, here used, denotes what the objectors to 
endless punishment tell us, viz,., a spiritual life. Then we have 
hypocrites earnestly desiring to be christians, but forbidden to come 
to the desired privilege. And when in this life did the Lord ever 
refuse any, who sought admittance into his favor, on the ground 
that they had been workers of iniquity ? Is he not willing that all 
should come to repentance and the knowledge of the truth? Ha3 
he excluded any who do not exclude themselves ? 

When we read such passages as these, " Looking diligently, lest 
any man fail of the grace of God;' * " How shall we escape, if we 
neglect so great salvation ; ,? f " What is a man profited if he shall 
gain the whole world and lose his own soul ;"J is it not implied 
that those who are not diligent to secure an interest in the favor of 
God, but neglect the salvation which the gospel reveals, and seek 
the world to the neglect of the future well-being of their souls, 
shall not be saved, shall fail of the grace of God, and shall lose their 
souls ? 

M What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and 
lose himself, or be cast away."|| If some men be lost, or castaway, 
they cannot all be saved. A man may lose his health, his prop- 
erty, his reputation, and even his natural life, and yet in fact be 
saved — from everlasting perdition. But if he be lost so as to be 
cast away, he cannot be finally saved. 

"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that 
believeth not, shall be damned." ## Here salvation is offered only on 
condition of believing ; and that not a salvation from the destruction 
of Jerusalem, for it was a condition to be proclaimed to all the 
world, till time should be longer. Go yz into all the world and preach 
the gospel to every creature. He that believeth (in all the world) shall 
be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned, shall be con- 
demned by God, and cast off from his presence. This obviously 
implies that the unbeliever will be adjudged to be guilty, by God, 
in the day of judgment ; that he will deserve eternal death, and that 

* Heb. *ii. 15. f Heb. ii. 3. t Matt. xvi. 26. 

i| Luke ix. 25. ** Mark xvi. 16. 



48 SCRIPTURE PROOFS, OF (Lect. 2. 

"he will be cast out into a place of endless woe. Is it asked how it 
can be just in God to condemn men forever for not believing the 
gospel? We answer: God has a right to appoint his own terms of 
mercy. Man is a sinner, and has no claim on God for salvation. 
He knowingly, and willingly, rejects that method of salvation which 
God has appointed. He despises and contemns the gospel. And 
it is owing to his love to sin, and hatred to God, that he does this. 
"Now as he has no confidence in God, does not believe that he is 
worthy of supreme love, and does not seek his favor, he must be 
wretched. As he rejects God he must go into eternity without a 
Father and a God. As he has no source of comfort in himself, and 
as he is now deprived of those earthly objects from which he deriv- 
ed all his happiness in this life, he must die forever. There is no 
being in eternity but God that can make ^man happy, and without 
his favor the sinner must be miserable. " Consider this, ye that 
forget God, lest he tear you in pieces and there be none to deliver" 
you out of his avenging hand. 

The remaining Scripture proofs which I shall bring on this sub- 
ject will be considered in the following Lecture. In the meantime 
I hope you will consider seriously the preceding testimony. Be 
not so unwise as to yield to the dictates of mere feeling on this 
subject. It is a matter to be decided not by the wishes of men, but 
by the testimony of God. To this then, as the only source of evi- 
dence, be your appeal. If the doctrine is taught here, that the 
punishment of the wicked will be eternal, remember that heaven 
and earth shall sooner pass away, than one jot or tittle of what Je- 
hovah has threatened shall fail of being accomplished. And if this 
doctrine be true it will seriously affect your eternal destiny. O 
then come to the sacred Records divested of all prejudice, and 
every prepossession, that you may obtain full information on this 
point. You are immortal beings, and can you feel otherwise than 
anxious to acquire the most correct information that can be obtain- 
ed, respecting that world which is to be your everlasting abode ? 
The prudent man looketh well to his going. Permit me as one who 



Lect. 2.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 49 

loves your souls, to intreat you to ponder the paths of your feet 
Self-deception can profit you nothing-. 

The Scriptures are able to make you wise unto salvation. Go to 
the Bible with humble prayer, and in the spirit of sincere inquiry, 
and it will point you to the heavenly city. It will open to you the 
bottomless pit, and show you the quenchless flame and the undying; 
worm. It will point to the blood which can cleanse from ail sin* 
Seek then sincerely to know the truth ; and remember that God has 
said of those who love not the truth, they shall be given up to strong 
delusion to believe a lie that they might be damned, because they 
believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness, 

" Ye sinners seek his grace, 

Whose wrath ye cannot bear — ■ 
Fly to the shelter of his cross 

And seek salvation there." 



LECTURE III. 
SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED. 

Gal. vi : 7, 8. — Be not deceived ; God is not mocked ; for whatsoever 
a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soiveth to his 
flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption : but he that soweth to the 
Spirit, shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 

The solemn warning here given is of the highest practical im- 
portance. Perhaps there is nothing to which depraved creatures 
are more addicted, though nothing be more dangerous, than to form 
an erroneous judgment or receive a false impression of our state, 
character, and conduct. It is from this predilection in favor of 
something that shall prophesy good concerning them, that the 
truth is rejected and those doctrines and systems of religion em- 
braced, which flatter their pride, and strengthen their hands, that 
they should not turn from their wicked way. The human heart 
loves to be soothed. The pleasing sound of peace, peace, though 
there be no peace, will be gratefully received. Such characters 
are they " which say to the seers, See not, and to the prophets, 
prophesy not unto us right things — speak unto us smooth things, 
prophesy deceits." But let us not deceive ourselves, God will not 
be mocked. For as in the natural, so in the moral world, " whatso- 
ever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." According as we be- 
have ourselves now, so will our account be in the great day. All 
that is done in this life is preparatory to another. The present is 



Lficr. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 51 

our seed-time ; in the other world will be the great harvest. And 
as the husbandman reaps in the harvest according to the nature and 
measure of seed that he sows, so our joys and sorrows in a future 
world will bear a relation to that which is wrought in this. "If we 
sow to the flesh, we shall of the flesh reap corruption." Those 
who live a carnal, sensual life, who, instead of devoting themselves 
and their all to the glory of God, and the good of others, spend 
their time in the works of the flesh, must expect no other fruit from 
such a course than destruction. Between unrepentant guilt here, 
and misery hereafter, there is an unalterable connection. The fruit 
which arises from sowing to the flesh is termed corruption. This 
word does not signify the destruction of being, but of well-being ; 
and the enduring of tribulation, and anguish, and everlasting de- 
spair- This destruction must be the opposite of everlasting life, 
for it is contrasted with it ; and what can this be short of eternal 
death ? I trust, my hearers, that I shall not weary your patience by 
dwelling upon this subject, for if the doctrine which we are discus- 
sing be true, it is a truth of the greatest moment. Permit me then 
to remark, 

V. That the endless punishment of the wicked is taught 

IN THOSE TEXTS WHICH EXPRESSLY ASSERT THAT SOME WILL BE 

forever excluded from heaven. " Verily I say unto you, all 
sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies where- 
with soever they shall blaspheme : but he that shall blaspheme 
against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of 
eternal damnation,"* In this place, as in Matt. xii. 31, 32, Jesus 
proceeds to state the awful nature and tremendous consequences of 
the sin against the Holy Ghost. -This sin consists in an obstinate 
and wilful ascription of the miraculous powers of Jesus Christ to 
demoniacal agency. Those- who, when they saw the miracles of 
Jesus, and his apostles, and could not resist the conviction that they 
were real, refused to yield to his authority, and ascribed his works 
to the agency of the Prince of the devils, rejected the strongest 
possible evidence of the truth of the Christian religion, and insult- 

♦Mark Hi, 23, 29. 



52 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 3. 

ed and abused the Holy Ghost, that very; spirit by which Jesus 
wrought his miracles. That this was what was intended by this sin 
is clear from Mark iii. 30. <s Because they said he hath an unclean 
spirit." This sin was manifestly against the Holy One ; it was re- 
proaching the divine character, charging it to be in league with Sa- 
tan, and blaspheming the power of God displayed in the miracles he 
wrought. This sin could never be forgiven. St. Matthew tells us 
that, " it shall not be forgiven in this world nor in the world to come*" 
It is well known " the world to come,'' according to the notion of 
the Jews, was a world without end, extending from the commence- 
ment of the reign of the Messiah on through eternity. That this is 
the meaning of the phrase, and that it implies the impossibility of 
forgiveness to the sinner to all eternity, is confirmed by the testimo- 
ny of Mark, who says that "he hath never forgiveness, but is in 
danger of eternal damnation" It means then, not the future age or 
dispensation known among the Jews as the world to eome^ but it 
means that the guilt will be unpardoned forever ; that such is the 
purpose of God that he will not forgive a sin so direct, awful and 
presumptuous — a sin committed under such aggravated circumstan- 
ces. Those, who committed this sin, refusing to profit by the best 
means which infinite wisdom and boundless compassion had devis- 
ed to make them wise and happy ; blaspheming the miraculous pow- 
ers of Christ ; persecuting and otherwise injuriously treating his 
Church ; apostatizing from the truth,, and turning to sensual gratifi- 
cations after having enjoyed great religious advantages, obtained 
much light, felt strong convictions and made some progress in re- 
forming their conduct ; and adding to all their other crimes that of 
final impenitence, must leave this world wholly unprepared for the 
next, and suffer the full penalty of unrepentant guilt. 

Let there be whatever uncertainty there may as. to the precise 
meaning of the word eternal, in this instance, still the true meaning 
of the passage is settled by the other branch of the sentence ; 
" hath never forgiveness." It is equivalent to John x. 28 : " I give 
unto them eternal life and they shall never perish.'' Were there 
any uncertainty as to the precise meaning of the word eternal here v 



Lect. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 53 

still the other member of the sentence would render its meaning 
perfectly clear, for that must be endless life which is equivalent to 
their never perishing; and by the same rule, that must be endless 
damnation which is directly the opposite of their ever being forgiv- 
en. If thi3 passage does not express the idea of endless punish- 
ment, what language can express it? To guard the mind against 
the idea that a limited punishment only is intended, the never hav- 
ing forgiveness, is prefixed, which ought to set the subject at rest. 

"Marvel not at this : for the hour is coming, in the which all that 
are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth, they 
that have done good, unto the resurrection of life, and they that 
have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation."* The word 
damnation means the sentence passed on one by a judge,— -judg- 
ment, or condemnation. Here it applies only to the judgment pro- 
nounced by God upon the wicked. Those who have in this life 
done evil shall be raised up to be condemned or damned. That this 
passage refers to a future judgment and to the general resurrection, 
and not to any thisg that takes place in this life, is clear from the 
following considerations. Jesus had just spoken of a moral resur- 
rection, which would be effected in this life by the power of the 
gospel. He adds here, that something still more wonderful should 
take place. " All that are in the graves shall hear his voice." But 
if a moral resurrection be meant in both cases, then we have the 
speaker saying, There is to be a moral resurrection, but marvel not 
at this, there is to be something more wonderful, a moral resurrecr 
tion. By those who are in their graves, Christ evidently means the 
dead. Sinners are sometimes said to be dead in sin, but not to be 
in a grave. This is applied in the Scriptures only to those who are 
deceased. The language here used in relation to the righteous, 
cannot be applied to any thing in this liie, nor is the language em- 
ployed of the evil, applicable to any thing in this life. In what 
condition among men can it be said with any appearance of truth 
and soberness, that they are brought forth from their graves to the 
resurrection of damnation ? This passage controverts the idea that 

* John r. 28, 29. 



54 . SCRIPTURE PROOFS, Of (tic*. 3. 

all men will be saved immediately at death, and proves that at the 
day of judgment the wicked will be condemned. Let it be added 
that if then condemned, they will be lost forever. There is no re- 
demption in hell — no Saviour — no Holy Spirit— no offers of mercy ; 
but 

" Darkness, death, and long despair 
Reign in eternal silence there." 

When one said to our Saviour, " Lord, are there few that be sav- 
ed ?"* was there not a convenient opportunity afforded him to have 
taught, on this occasion, that all men would finally be saved, if he 
did believe and teach that doctrine ? " Lord,, are there few that be 
saved ?" It was a prevalent opinion among the Jews, that but few 
would enter heaven. On this subject the man wished the opinion 
of Jesus. The whole context shows that no temporal preservation, 
but deliverance from the wrath to come was meant, and is fully 
confirmed by the subsequent mention of the " strait gate." This 
was a question of idle curiosity. An answer to it would have done 
little good. It was far more important that the man should secure 
his own salvation. Our Lord gave him no intimation that all would 
be saved, but advised him as he does all; to strive to enter into 
heaven, for many would seek to enter in and should not be able. If 
in this life they should neglect the concerns of religion, and be 
wholly engrossed with the affairs of time ; and at death or at the 
judgment, they should seek to enter into heaven, they will not be 
able, for then it will be forever too late. The master of the house 
will have risen up and shut the door. They might, during the term 
of their probation, have availed themselves of the opportunity to 
have obtained admittance into the kingdom of heaven ; but now it 
is too late. The day of mercy is over : death is come, and heaven 
barred against them. Christ then declares that he will say unto 
these workers of iniquity, " Depart from me," and adds, " there shall 
be Jweeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, 
and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God f 

* Luke xiii. 28—29. 



Lkct. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 55 

and you yourselves thrust oui" "And many shall come from the 
east and from' the west, and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac 
and Jacob, in the kingdom of God. But the children of the king- 
dom shall be cast out into outer darkness ; there shall be weeping 
and smashing of teeth."* To be cast into outer darkness is an im- 
age of future punishment. It is not improbable that the image was 
taken from Roman dungeons. These were commonly constructed 
under ground ; were impervious to the light of day , and of course 
were dark, damp, and pestilential. Masters were in the habit of 
constructing such prisons for the vilest of their slaves, where the 
unhappy convict, without light, company, or comfort, spends his 
days and nights in weeping from grief, and gnashing his teeth from 
vexation. The image expresses the fact that the wicked who are 
lost, will be shut out of the light and happiness of heaven, and will 
be confined in gloomy darkness, and weep in hopeless grief, and 
gnash their teeth in indignation against God. 

" The Son of man goeth as it was determined of him ; but woe 
unto that man by whom he is betrayed."f "The Son of man go- 
eth as it is written of him ; but woe unto that man by whom the Son 
of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not 
been born."f This language was spoken of Judas, who was denom- 
inated by our Saviour, "the son of perdition," (John xvii. 12.) and 
who having betrayed his Lord and Master into the hands of sinners 
was driven by remorse of conscience to commit suicide, " that he 
might go to his own place." — (Acts i. 25.) On the principle of 
Universal Salvation it can be said of no man, "good for him if he 
had not been born," for should a period ever arrive when he should 
be liberated from punishment, and restored to eternal happiness, 
this would infinitely overbalance all possible temporary suffering, of 
whatever acuteness and continuance, and would therefore prove his 
existence, on the whole, to be an incalculable blessing. Is Judas 
in heaven ? Will he ever be there, and dwell there, forever? How 
then is he " lost" and the " son of perdition V* And how could it 
have been said of him " Good for that man if he had not been born ?" 
* Matt. yiii. 11, 12. f Luke xxii. 22. % Matt. x*vi. 24. 



5(1 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 3. 

Should it be urged that this was a proverbial mode of speaking 
among the Jews, I admit it. Dr. Gill, in his notes on this and the 
parallel passage i» Mark xiv. 21, says, "This is a Rabbinical ex- 
pression frequently used in one form or other, and sometimes as our 
Lord spake it." But what does this prove ; that our Saviour lied' 
and that it was good for Judas that he had been born ? Would he 
have used language that implied infinitely more than was intended 
to be conveyed ? Should it be urged that Job and Jeremiah used 
such language in reference to themselves. — (Job iii. 3. Jer. xx. 14, 
18.) I would ask what this proves? When Job cursed the day of 
his birth he was enduring a great amount of bodily and mental suf- 
fering ; and he had not had those views of the divine perfections 
which produced in him true humility, and submission to God, and 
which led him to abhor himself and repent in dust and ashes. Be- 
ing unhumbled, and cherishing no hope in the mercy of God, and 
suffering the most extreme anguish; no doubt he felt that it would 
have been good for him not to have been born. But the subsequent 
history of Job proves, that in this case he spake unadvisedly with 
his lips. Jeremiah, when he cursed the day of his birth, was under 
the infinence of powerful temptation. And here we see the weak- 
ness of the best of men, who are but men at best. But we are not 
to infer from hence, that it would have been good for Jeremiah that 
he had never been born. But Christ spake as never man spake- 
What he said was always to the purpose. He never spake unadvis- 
edly with his lips. We therefore conclude that when he said, it 
would have been good for Judas if he had not been born, he would 
have us understand that the crime of Judas was so exceedingly ag- 
gravated, and that his punishment must necessarily be so great, that 
even an eternity of bliss could not counterbalance it. There can 
be no meaning to this passage, if it does not express the endless du- 
ration of future punishment. It follows, that in relation to one in- 
dividual the sufferings of hell will be eternal, If of one, then it is 
equally certain and proper that all the finally impenitent should per- 
ish forever. The punishment of Judas proves also, that sinners 
•cannot plead the decrees of God as an excuse for their sins. God 



Lect. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 57 

will punish crimes for what they arc in themselves considered. His 
own inscrutable purposes, in relation to human actions, will not 
change the nature of these actions, or screen the sinner from the 
punishment which he deserves. 

In Matt, xviii. 23, &c, we have the parable of the servant who 
owed ten thousand talents and had nothing to pay. This servant his 
Lord ultimately commanded to be thrown into prison, and there be 
confined till he should pay the whole debt. How evident it is that 
this man could never pay the debt, and must remain there forever. 
The moral of this parable is, "so shall my heavenly Father do also 
unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother 
their trespasses." We are greatly indebted to God. We owe him 
ten thousand talents and have nothing to pay. Now in order to ob- 
tain forgiveness of God, we must possess a forgiving spirit. It is- 
indispensably necessary to pardon and peace, that we not only do 
justly, but love mercy, and walk humbly with God. If we show no 
mercy, we shall have judgment without mercy. We shall be cast 
into the prison of hell, and must there remain forever and ever. 

" And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to 
shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the 
light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved, shall walk 
in the light of rt: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory 
and honor into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by 
day, for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the 
glory and honor of the nations into it. And there shall in no ivise 
enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh 
abomination, or maketh a lie ; but they who are written in the 
Lamb's book of life.' 5 * According to the plain declaration of scrip- 
ture, all impenitent sinners are defilers. They are neither cleans- 
ed from the filthiness of the flesh, nor the spirit. Their hearts and 
consciences are defiled. They all work that which is abominable 
in the sight of the Lord. Such being their true character they will 
in no wise be permitted to enter the heavenly city. Therefore not 
only will not all men be saved, as some will be excluded frcm ths 

* Sev. *xi. 23- £7, 



53 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect 3. 

heavenly city ; but some may have not their names written in the 
Lamb's book of life ; and this is a further evidence that all will not 
be saved. 

VI. Those passages of scripture which speak of the 

WICKED AS PERISHING, BEING CAST AWAY, REJECTED, BURNT UP AS 

chaff, &c, teach the same doctrine. " The preaching of the 
cross is to them that perish, foolishness, but to us who are saved, it 
is the power of God."* " For we are unto God a sweet savour of 
Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish; to the one 
we are a savour of death unto death, and to the other, the savour 
of life unto life."f Perishing is here put in contrast with being sav- 
ed* " But these are natural brute beasts, made to be taken and de- 
stroyed, speak evil of the things they understand not, and shall ut- 
terly perish in their own corruption.''^ " That which beareth briers 
and thorns is rejected', but the chaff will be burned up with un- 
quenchable nre."|| By .the chaff, here, is represented the wicked. 
They are represented as being driven away like chaff before the 
wind. Job compares them (chap. xxi. verse 18.) to the chaff which 
the wind driveth away. They are also represented as chaff which 
the fire consumes. — (Isa. v. 24.) This image is often used to ex- 
press judgments. " Thou shalt thresh the mountains and beat them 
small, and shalt make the hills as chaff."— (Isa. xl. 1 — 15.) By the 
unquenchable fire is meant the eternal sufferings of the wicked in 
he'll. The image is used to express extreme suffering, since a 
death by burning is one of the most horrible that can be conceived. 
" As the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in 
the end of the world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, 
and shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and them 
which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire."** 
Let such testimony speak for itself. If all are finally saved there is 
no propriety in speaking of any as lost, perished, rejected, and cast 
out, at the end of the world, into unquenchable fire. We may be 
assured that the compassionate Saviour and his apostles would not 

* Cor. i. 18. f 2 Cor. ii. 15, 16. % 2 Pet. ii. 12. 

II Matt. iii. 12. ** Matt. %\\v 4Q, 41, 42, 



Laor. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT 59 

deceive, or use words to torment and tantalize us. They would not 
tell us of hell-fire which had no existence. We may be sure eve- 
•7 word is full of meaning. If they meant to say the wicked will 
3 after, then they will suffer. To these passages might be added, 
as every one knows who is conversant with the Bible, a multitude 
of other passages declaring the same truth, in the same unambigu- 
ous manner. And they must be considered as teaching the doc- 
trine of annihilation or eternal woe. That they do not teach the 
doctrine of annihilation we shall hereafter show. They must then 
teach the doctrine of endless punishment. Perdition, destruction* 
&c. are ever in scripture set in opposition to destruction. But 
where is the contrast, if those who are cast away, rejected, lost, de- 
stroyed, be finally saved ? 

VII. The doctrine in question is taught in all those texts 

WHICH INTIMATE THAT A CHANGE OF HEART AND A PREPARATION 
FOR HEAVEN ARE CONFINED TO THE PRESENT LIFE. "Seek ye the 

Lord while he may he found, and call ye upon him while he is near: 
let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts, 
and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, 
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."* "Because I have 
called, and ye refused ; I have stretched out my hand, and no man 
regarded : but ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none 
of my reproof. I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock 
when your fear cometh ; when your fear cometh as a desolation and 
your destruction as a whirlwind. When distress and anguish cometh 
upon you, then they shall call upon me, but I will not answer ; they 
shall seek me early but shall not find me ; for that they hated in- 
struction and did not choose the fear of the Lord : they would none 
of my counsel, they despised my reproof. Therefore shall they eat 
of the fruit of their own ways and be filled with their own devices."f 
These and many similar passages teach us that man has a limited 
time to prepare for the retributions of eternity, and that there will 
be no successful calling upon the Lord, and consequently no salva- 

* Isa. It. 6, 7. f Prov. i. 24—31. 



60 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 3. 

tion after a limited period. If God shall never answer their calls, 
and they shall find they will never be saved — 

" Great God, on what a slender thread 

Hang everlasting things ! 
The eternal states of all the dead 

Upon life's feeble strings ! 

Infinite joy or endless woe 

Attend on every breath ; 
And yet how unconcerned we go, 

Upon the brink of death! 

Waken, O Lord, our drowsy sense, 

To walk this dangerous road ; 
And if our souls are hurried hence, 

May they be found with God." 

" While ye have the light walk in the light, that ye may be the 
children of the light.' 1 * Christ is the true light that will not de- 
ceive us. " He coming into the world enlightened every man." — 
(John i. 9.) By his own personal ministry, and by his spirit and 
apostles, light or teaching is graciously afforded to all. This light 
however is in the gospel, and not in the creature, until he who was 
sometimes darkness is made light in the Lord. But it is the duty of 
all to believe in this light, to subscribe to the truths which it discov- 
ers, and to walk in the path to which it directs us. By and by God 
will take from us the light of the gospel which alone can show us 
the way to Christ, and then we shall have no longer an opportunity 
of becoming the children of the light, but shall wander endlessly 
in mistakes and errors and woe. 

"While they (the foolish virgins) went to buy, the bridegroom 
came ; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage : 
and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, say- 

* John xii. 36. 



Lect. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 61 

ing, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily, I 
say unto you, I know you not?'* The marriage ceremony took place 
before the bride left her father's house ; but a feast was given at the 
house of her husband, and which was also called the marriage or a 
part of the marriage solemnities. This part of the parable doubt- 
less represents the entrance of those who are ready, into the king- 
dom of heaven when the Son of man shall come to call us to an ac- 
count. The door was shut. No more could be admitted to the 
marriage feast. J know you not. You were not in the company 
of those who attended me at the marriage feast, and are unknown 
to me. The word know is often used in the sense of approving and 
loving. You are not my real friends and followers. Now, my hear- 
ers, we are all like the virgins going to meet the bridegroom, — the 
Lord Jesus Christ. He is coming, not to destroy Jerusalem, but to 
judge the world. Like the coming of the bridegroom, his coming 
will be sudden ; to many it will be an unexpected event. But when 
they shall see him coming at death or at the judgment, like the fool- 
ish virgins, they ■will begin to prepare to meet their God. But it 
will be too late. They that are ready will enter in, and heaven will 
be forever closed against all others. 

"To-day if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts. Be* 
hold now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of salvation."f 
Now sinners have an opportunity to hear God's voice, and to hear it 
not merely externally, but internally, with appropriate feelings, with 
repentance, faith, and prayer. If they do not avail themselves of 
this opportunity to hear his voice, they must of course harden their 
hearts against it. And thus they will fail of securing an interest in 
the salvation of Christ. For during this accepted time and day of 
salvation, 

" when mortals may 

Secure the blessings of the day," 
they hardened their hearts. 

"He that being often reproved, hardeneth his neck, shall sudden- 
ly be destroyed, and that without remedy ."J They who sin in spite 
* Matt . xxv. 10—12. t Heb. iii. 7.-2 Cor. vi. 2. J Prov. xxix. 1. 



m SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF ("Lect.3. 

of admonitions and reproofs which are designed and adapted to 
bring sinners to repentance and salvation, will be eventually given 
up to a judicial hardness of heart. Their day of grace will be 
spent, and their ruin will be without remedy. For them, there will 
be no recovering mercy. If we continue to harden our hearts 
through this our only term of probation, God will swear in his wrath 
that we shall not enter into that rest which he has reserved in heaven 
for the people of God. 

" See that ye refuse not him that speaketh ; for if they escaped 
not, who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we 

escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven. 

Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God, lest there 
be any fornicator or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of 
meat sold his birthright. For ye know that afterward when he 
would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected ; for he found 
no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears."* 
If we turn away from him who speaks from heaven, it will be equal- 
ly impossible for us to escape the wrath of God, and obtain the 
blessing of salvation as it was for those to escape punishment who 
transgressed the law of Moses, or for Esau to obtain the blessing of 
his father after he had sold his birthright. 

"Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward hi 
heaven; for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 
-— — Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy; for behold your re- 
ward is great in heaven. But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are made par- 
takers of Christ's sufferings, that when his glory shall be revealed, 
ye may be glad with exceeding joy ."f Here it is expressly assert- 
ed that eternal life is the reward of holiness in the present life. 
Now, if our future condition is not affected by our conduct in this 
life, why speak of a reward in heaven ? 

" Whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny be- 
fore my Father which is in heaven. Whosoever therefore shall 

be ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and sinful 
generation, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when hecom- 

* Heb. xii. 25. xii. 15—17. f Matt, v, 12. Luke vi. 23. 1 PeUiv. U. 



Lxct. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 63 

eth in the glory of his Father, with the holy angels."* He that is 
ashamed to own attachment to Christ on account of his lowly ap- 
pearance, his poverty, his contempt, and his sufferings, and is asham- 
ed of his doctrines and institutions in this life, shall be excluded 
from heaven hereafter. They who will not acknowledge Christ 
here, but cast him out and despise him, must be cast out by him and 
consigned to eternal and hopeless sorrows. Those who honor Christ, 
he will honor; but those who despise him shall be lightly esteemed. 

" Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and 
rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal ; but 
lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor 
rust doth corrupt. Seek first the kingdom of God and his righ- 
teousness, and all these things shall be added unto yon. Sell 

that ye have and give alms : provide yourselves bags which wax 

not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not. Laying up in 

store a good foundation against the time to come. Be ye also 

ready ; for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of man cometh."f 
Do not these passages also obviously imply that a preparation for 
heaven must be sought and obtained in the present life, and that if 
this preparation be not had here, we can never be admitted into 
heaven ? 

" Agree with thine adversary quickly, whilst thou art in the way 
with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee unto the judge, 
and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into pris- 
on. Verily, I say unto thee, Thou shaltby no means come out 
thence till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.''^ These verses 
naturally introduce the case of such persons as are exposed to law- 
suits for injuring their neighbors. Now, to go to law, to be liti- 
gious, is a violation always ot the law requiring us to love our 
neighbors as ourselves. In this case, we should if possible come 
to an agreement before the trial, lest being found guilty, we should 
be cast into prison, and continue there, till the last farthing should 
be paid. But under this counsel a more important instruction is 

* Matt. x. 38. Mark viii. S3. f Matt. vi. 19, 20, 33. Luke lit 33. 1 
Tim. vi. 19. Matt. xxiv. 44. $ Matt. v. 25, 26, 



64 SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect 3. 

couched. Whatever injuries that are done to men, are sins com- 
mitted ultimately against God, who is our adversary at law. If we 
have violated one of the great commandments, by not loving our 
neighbor as ourselves, God has an action against us. We must 
soon appear before the judgment seat of Christ. A way of peace 
and reconciliation is revealed in the gospel. If we are not recon- 
ciled to our brother, nor our God, before death, our case will be tri- 
ed at the supreme court of heaven, from which there can be no ap- 
peal ; and we shall be found guilty, and condemned, and cast into 
the prison of hell. From this infernal prison there will be no re- 
lease. 

VIII. There is another class of texts which expressly 

ASSERT THAT THE PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED WILL BE ENDLESS 

in duration, in language not less expressive than that which we 
have already noticed. " And if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, 
cut them off and cast them from thee : it is better for thee to enter 
into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands to be cast in- 
to everlasting fire, And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is 

better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands, to 
go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched ; where their 
worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched"* The immediate means 
of sufferings to the impenitent are styled by our Saviour, " the fire 
that shall not be quenched and the worm that dieth not." Our Lord 
in this passage and connection, repeats five times in succession, that 
the fire into which the wicked are cast, will i>ever be quenched ; 
and three times he speaks of hell as a place wMere their worm dieth 
not. And still further to show the perpetuity of the sufferings of 
the wicked, he adds, "For every one shall be salted with fire. As 
it is the property of salt to preserve from decay substances to which 
it is suitably applied, so the wicked will be salted with fire, as to 
become inconsumable. Thus their torments, instead of putting an 
end to their sufferings, will continue them in being. 

It has been asked whether the wicked will be burned in a literal 
fire, and the common impression has been that they will. To us, 
* Malt, xviii. 8, Luke ix. 43, 4-1, 



Lect. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 65 

however, this is a subject of comparatively little consequence. The 
fact that the wicked will be eternally punished, cursed of God, 
should awe every heart and lead every sinner to seek repentance, 
and forgiveness of God. As however the body will be raised, it is 
not improbable that a mode of punishment will be adopted, suited 
to the raised bodies of the wicked. It may perhaps bear some 
analogy to suffering here in its various forms of flames, and every 
other earthly woe that tortures the mortal body in this life. But I 
would not now dwell upon this point. We shall in a future lecture 
inquire in what the future punishment of the wicked consists. It 
is sufficient for us now to know and feel that this punishment is 
eternal. 

w But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto 
thyself wrath against the day of wrath, and revelation of the righ- 
teous judgment of God, who will render to every man according to 
his deeds : to them who by patient continuance in well doing, seek 
tor glory and honor and immortality, eternal life : but unto them that 
are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteous- 
ness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every 
soul of man that doeth evil, to the Jew first, and also to the Gen- 
tile. n * Can the doctrine of eternal rewards and punishments have 
a more unequivocal assertion ? Here an impenitent life is repre-. 
sented as treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath, and it is 
asserted that in that day of wrath, God will render to all his ration- 
al creatures according to their deeds. Then eternal life will be 
awarded to those who by well-doing have sought for glory and hon- 
or and immortality ; and indignation and wrath, tribulation and an- 
guish, the opposite of eternal life, shall be awarded to those who 
obey not the truth, but obey unrighteousness. 

u I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from who«« 
face the earth and the heavens fled away. And I saw the dead, 
small and great, stand before God ; and the books were opened ; 
and another book was opened which was the book of life ; and the 
dead were judged out of those things which were written in the 

• Rom. ii. 5—9. 
P* 



6G SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect.S. 

books according to their works. And the sea gave np the dead 
which were in it, and death and hell delivered up the dead which 
were in them, and they were judged every man according to their 
works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This 
is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the 
book of life, was cast into the lake of fire." # A more impressive 
description of the resurrection of the dead and of eternal judgment 
is scarcely in the power of human language. Lo, the dead, "both 

small and great stand before God! Death and hell, or the grave 

were cast into the lake of fire." Prior to the day of judgment 
death and hell were the receptacles of the ungodly. Here they 
were confined as in a prison. But having received their doom, they 
shall go away into everlasting punishment. This is the second 
death. In this dreadful abyss all will be cast, as the just punish- 
ment of their sins, excepting those whose names are "written in 
the book of life.' 9 I conceive that the doctrine of endless punish- 
ment is not taught in any plainer manner in any confession of faith 
on the globe. And if these passages can be explained away, all 
those confessions may. Nothing can stand before such criticisms* 

Thus 1 have given you a very summary view of the testimony of 
God, respecting the endless punishment of the wicked. The great- 
er part of this testimony is taken from our Lord's discourse, who 
knew the truth, and was himself to be the judge of the world. This 
renders the evidence peculiarly interesting. We have the declar- 
ation of him who knew the character, desert, and destiny of all 
men. 

I would now request .you, my dear hearers, to pause, and consider 
prayerfully the preceding arguments, and decide as on a dying pil- 
low. Can these most unequivocal declarations of God's word be 
honestly and safely set aside ? Is that system worthy of your con- 
fidence, which fearlessly proposes to make a covenant with death, 
and with hell, to be at an agreement? Is it safe to hope for heaven 
while going on still in your trespasses ? Is it wise to trust the des- 
tiny of your soul upon that system which has a tendency to take 

* Rev. xx. 11—15. 



Lect. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 67 

away every powerful incentive to holiness, to remove all perma- 
nent restraints, to leave men in bondage to their evil propensities, 
and to lead them to hope that they shall be as well off in the end by- 
disobeying God, as by obeying him ? Is it prudent to risk your sal- 
vation on a doctrine which is rejected by the pious and praying part 
of the community, and embraced chiefly by those whom the Bible 
denominates wicked, and which speaks peace to the wicked to 
whom God has said, « There is no peace ;' which confounds all dis- 
tinctions between sin and holiness, and makes the hearts of the 
righteous sad by its lies, and strengthens the hands of the wicked 
that he should not turn from his evil Y* r ay by falsely promising him 
life? 

O be entreated, fellow-sinner, attentively to consider the endless 
duration of future punishment! It is this which will constitute the 
most terrible ingredient in that cup which will be the portion of the 
wicked. Dreadful as will be their sufferings, they would not be so 
intolerable, were there any hope of their termination. But of this 
there can be no hope. Every thing will conspire to force upon the 
sinner's mind a conviction that his existence and his sufferings will 
be commensurate with eternity. The misery of being lost, how in- 
expressible ! It is misery without relief, without hope, without 
limits, — ever increasing, with capacities perpetually strengthened 
and enlarged to bear accumulating woe. O, might hope enter this 
dark mansion, might its guilty inmates be struck into nonexistence 
at any period ever so remote, might one drop of water be applied 
to their parched tongue, what a luxury! But all this will be denied. 

Will you then say, " If I must be damned, there is no alternative, 
Rather than live as the Bible requires, I will run the hazard?" Be- 
fore you rest in this fatal resolve, stop for a moment, and think 
what it is to sink down in the faintness of despair forever, under the 
wrath and curse of God! And will you wade down to ruin since 
the Son of God died to save you, died on the or .,, J.ied in agonies, 
and is now waiting to be gracious ? Shall it I as it respects 

you, that Christ died in vain ? Shall you ils, ^vhich might be 
raised to a glorious immortality, and eel eK : high praisss of 



m SCRIPTURE PROOFS OF (Lect. 3. 

God to all eternity, writhe in agonies forever ? There is virtue 
enough in the blood of the everlasting covenant to quench the 
flames of hell that are kindling in your breasts, and to deliver you 
from going down to the pit of endless woe. In Christ there is a 
full and complete salvation. And he. that repents of his sin, and 
believes in the Lord Jesus Christ, shall be saved. 

What then is your resolve ? Will you turn away and say, "These 
are hard sayings ; my feelings revolt at such sentiments ; I cannot 
believe that the punishment of the wicked will be endless, nor that 
my eternal destiny will depend under God upon the manner in 
which I conduct myself in this life ; I do not want to hear any more 
of these things?' 5 Iirannouneing the terrors of the Lord, we do 
not denounce against you endless wrath. But, knowing the terrors 
of the Lord, we would persuade you to repentance. We would 
have you, also, know and feel the terrors of the Lord, that you 
might be persuaded, by us to be reconciled to God. 

Did we know that you had already committed the unpardonable 
gin, or that your clay of probation were closed, and your final destiny 
sealed, it would be useless for us to tell you of these things, and 
we might be considered as tormenting you before the time. But 
since we hope you are within the reach of mercy, how can we for- 
bear to use all possible means to awaken you from your lethargy 
of sin ! Hqyt can we forbear to tell you that " Your judgment lin- 
gereth not, and your damnation slumbereth not." — (2 Pet. ii. 3.) 

My careless hearers! death! perdition! everlasting destruction ! 
the yawning lake of pitchy darkness, from which arises the smoke 
of an eternal torment ! are before you. Your path is in the broad 
and frequented way that leadeth to destruction. And will you not 
stop and listen a moment? Will you not bear with your friend ? 
Will you pass on to be punished ? Shall those eyes which now 
behold so many objects of delight, be fixed in despair and glare in 
eternal fire ? Shall that bosom which now swells with the elastici- 
ty of health and youthful spirits, feel the gnawing of that worm 
that never dies ? Shall that ear which now hears the sound of the 
gospel, hear the awful voice of Jehovah declare to yoa, " Depart 



Lect. 3.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 69 

ye cursed into everlasting fire ?" Must I see some of those who 
are dear to me, for whose salvation I have labored, and wept, and 
prayed, and whom I would have gladly plucked as brands out of 
the burning, weltering beneath the burning billows of Jehovah's 
wrath ? 

But I cannot proceed. The thought is overwhelming, that any 
of my dear hearers will die in their sins, and sink in unabated 
flames, and converse with everlasting groans, and weep, and wail, 
and gnash their teeth in a world of endless rebellion against God. 
I can only point you to the cross of Christ. The door of mercy is 
now open, but it may soon be shut. Jesus is now pleading but he 
will not plead always. O "behold the Lamb of God that taketh 
away the sin of the world !" Cast yourself upon his clemency and 
seek for forgiveness in the way he has prescribed. 

But are you yet at ease ? How can I then cease to warn you ? 
My soul follows after you with ardent desires and bleeding pangs. 
But what can I do for your salvation ? I would therefore turn my 
expostulation to supplication. O Lord God Almighty 1 with holy , 
awe I speak thy revered name. Reach forth thine arm of mercy, 
and pluck these precious souls from everlasting burnings. Must 
they perish forever ? O Lord ! of thine infinite mercy prevent it. 
Holy Spirit of promise ! aid my supplications, and of thine efficient 
agency, turn these sinners from darkness unto light, and from the 
power of Satan unto God. O guide them into all truth. Lord Je- 
sus ! pity them, pardon them, and save them. Remember thy dy- 
ing groans! remember Calvary! and let thy love flow into their 
bosoms, and melt and purify their obdurate and defiled hearts.. 
And thine will be the glory forever. Amen, 



U3CTUKE IV. 

COLLATERAL PROOFS OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 

Ezekiel xviii : 4. — " The soul that sinnelh, it shall die.'* 

Ay impious proverb had been taken up by the Jews, in their cap- 
tivity, which -carried with it an awful impeachment of the rectitude 
of the Divine procedure. " Ye use this proverb concerning the 
land of Israel,"' since it is desolated by the judgments of God, 
" saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's 
teeth are set on edge." The import of thi3 proverb was, that the 
children, though themselves innocent, suffered for the sins of their 
parents. 

That there was some occasion for this proverb, it cannot be deni- 
ed. God had said that he would "visit the iniquity of the fathers 
upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation." — (Deut. v. 
9.) — and he had often declared, that in bringing present ruin upon Ju- 
dah and Jerusalem, he had had an eye to the sins of Manas3eh, and 
ether preceding kings. 

A parent, who is possessed of wealth, or blessed with a healthful 
constitution, may squander the one by idleness, gambling and in- 
temperance ; or destroy the other by a lewd manner of living. 
Consequently, his children, who have a just claim on his best exer- 
tions to educate and support them, and to make a reasonable provis- 
ion for their happiness, are reduced to poverty and wretchedness by 
his imprudence, or afflicted with a diseased constitution by his li- 



Leot.4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT 71 

bidinous habit3. In each case the proverb is just ; " The fathers 
have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge. 1 ' 

But it was not in this sense that the profane Jews used this prov- 
erb. They intended it as a reflection upon God, and an awful im- 
peachment of the equity of his proceedings with them as individu- 
als and as a nation. To repel this awful and impious charge, the 
prophet was directed to say unto them, " Behold all souls are mine ; 
as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine ; the 
soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of 
the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the 
righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him ; and the wicked- 
ness of the wicked shall be upon him." 

This proverb is, in principle, if not in form, still used for the pur- 
pose it was employed by the wicked Jews. In the language of 
modern sinners it is said, " That the posterity of Adam have no con- 
trol over their moral condition when born, and that, therefore, it is 
derogatory to the rectitude of the divine procedure, to bring them 
into existence with a depraved nature, in which they would be ren- 
dered morally certain of committing actual transgression as soon as 
their capacity should be matured to perform voluntary acts, and. then 
to punish them for those acts." That the descendants of Adam 
have no control over their moral condition, when born, is a self- 
evident proposition. But that it is unjust in God to bring them into 
existence with a depraved nature, in which they would commit act- 
ual sin a3 soon as their capacity should be matured to perform vol- 
untary acts, and then punish them for those acts, must be denied. 

That he has appointed and brought into operation such a consti- 
tution of things, is manifest. The Author of Nature has made this 
the law of nature, that like should produce like, that the stream 
should become impure when the fountain is poisoned, and that the 
branches should die when the root is destroyed. Herce, Adam was 
constituted the public head of all his posterity, so that his transgres- 
sion involved their being transgressors from the womb, and alike ex- 
posed to death-with himself. And thus we are informed that Adam, 
after hi3 fall, "begat a son in his own likeness" — (G n. v: 3.) — And 



n COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Legt. 4, 

St. Paul informs us, " that by one man's disobedience many were 
made (or constituted) sinners." — (Rom. v: 39.) Now since events 
have been thus ordered by the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, we 
should not for a moment question the rectitude of his procedure ; 
for in him there is no unrighteousness. " Shall not the Judge of all 
the earth do right ?" — (Gen. xviii : 25.) 

But, though we may not be able to reconcile the connection be- 
tween our inherent depravity, and our free agency and moral 
accountability, so as to be guilty for our own sins only ; yet it may 
be safely affirmed that it is for our own voluntary acts only that we 
are accountable, and for our own crimes only that we are punishable. 
Much might be said to render this evident and unquestionable. 

The Bible which reveals the manner in which sin originated in 
our world, though it teaches us that human depravity is the fatal 
inheritance of all mankind ; yet it charges them with the guilt of 
their own sinful acts, without allowing any excuse in consequence 
of their relation to their fallen head. 

In the serious conviction for sin, which all in a greater or less de- 
gree feel, experience teaches us that the guilt of our own transgres- 
sion, as well as the act, is our own. Who ever felt sorrow of heart 
or repented of the sins of the first parents of our race ? No one. 
We may mourn over the sins of others, but we cannot repent of 
them. 

The principle on which the final destinies of men will be fixed at 
the day of judgment, will be according to the moral character of 
their own works, performed in this life, and independent of the mor- 
al character of the works performed by any other being with whom 
we are connected in this state of being. " Every one of us shall 
give account of himself unto God." — (Rom. xiv. 12.) 

To the impenitent and unrenewed sinner then, the same reply 
may be given that the prophet was directed to give to the Jews. 
" The soul that sinneth, it shall die" It is in temporal calamities on- 
ly that innocent children suffer in consequence of the wickedness 
of their parents. But as it respects spiritual and eternal misery, no 
4>ne will be punished for the transgression committed by another. 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 3$ 

You have therefore no ground to palliate or deny the guilt of yoor 
own sinful acts, as you will not be permitted to lay their guilt upon 
any other being but yourselves. Though your sinful actions result 
from inherent depravity, over which you have no control, yet you 
are under no irresistible impulse to sin. You are free agents, as 
you have ability to follow your inclinations. And you are not less 
obliged to love and serve God with all your heart, than was Adam 
in paradise. Now, if you continue in sin, you must reap the con- 
sequences. "The soul that sinneth, it shall die."' There is no al- 
ternative. 

This declaration contains an important truth, which is not limited 
to any age or nation. It is a declaration of universal concern; fco 
the explanation and proof of which, your serious attention is 
now requested. What I propose is, 

J. To EXPLAIN IN A BRIEF MANNER THE PRINCIPAL TERMS CON- 
TAINED IN THE PASSAGE BEFORE US ; and 

II. To ESTABLISH THE TRUTH WHICH THEY EXHIBIT, VIZ. END- 
LESS PUNISHMENT ; FROM FACTS AND CONSIDERATIONS WHICH, IN- 
DEPENDENT OF DIRECT SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY, APPEAR TO MY OWN 
MIND CONCLUSIVE PROOFS THAT THE PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED 
IN A FUTURE STATE, WILL BE ENDLESS. 

By the soul, as a general and comprehensive term, is meant th« 
spiritual, rational, and immortal part of man ; which is the origin of 
our thoughts, and desires, and reasoning ; which distinguishes us 
from the brute creation, and which has some resemblance to its Di- 
vine Author. This must be spiritual, because it thinks; and it 
must be immortal, because it is spiritual. 

By sin, which the soul commits, the violation of the divine law is 
intended ; for "sin is the transgression of the law." — (1 John iii. 4.) 

The death, to which the soul, guilty of the transgression of th* 
divine law, is exposed, is such a death as the soul can die. It is not 
annihilation, or ceasing to exist ; but it is losing all hope, all re- 
straint, and sinking into everlasting horror and wretchedness. Th* 
soul, being immortal, is capable of experiencing this dea^Sfci^- 
cording to the testimony of the Bible, it must thus 4&*elf t^ r " 



roM 



4* 



74 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect 4. 

aer persist in the ways of transgression. When the sinner expe- 
riences this death, he ceases to be a prisoner of hope, and plunges 
into a state of endless despair and wretchedness. This is the sec- 
ond death. God stating to Adam what would be the inevitable con- 
sequence of transgression, said, " In the day thou eatest thereof 
thou shalt surely die," — (Gen. ii. 17.) — or, dying thou shalt die. 
The import of this first threatening to man is, " In the day that thou 
firmest, thou shalt experience, death spiritual, by the guilt and pow- 
er of sin, death temporal, which shall then begin in thee by decays, 
infirmities, dangers, and other harbingers of death, and death eternal, 
which shall immediately succeed the other." This was particularly- 
addressed to Adam, but through him, as a federal head, to all his 
posterity. Accordingly, we find the divine declaration afterwards, 
" The soul (meaning any person) that sinneth, it shall die." In the 
epistle to the Romans, it is said that " The wages of sin is death." 
(Rom. vi. 23.) Death, as here used, denotes the awful punishment 
of sin, in the everlasting banishment of the sinner from the pres- 
ence and favor of God. This is as justly due to the sinner, as the 
food and pay which generals give to their soldiers for their services. 
The wages which sin gives to its slaves, is eternal death. That 
this is the idea intended to be conveyed in this passage, is evident 
from the latter part of the verse. " But the gift of God is eternal 
life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Here death is contrasted with 
eternal life, and must be the opposite, or it would not be a contrast. 
The phrase " eternal life," is opposed to death, and proves incontes- 
tibly, that that means eternal death. The one is as long as the oth- 
er. As there is no doubt about the duration of life, so there can be 
none about the duration of death. 

In this sense the term death, as contained in our text, is to be 
understood. " The soul that sinneth, it shall die." It shall be for- 
ever excluded from the happiness of heaven, and sink to endless 
misery. Having thus explained the principal terms contained in 
the text, I proceed, 



M 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 7* 

II. TO ESTABLISH THE TRUTH WHICH THEY EXHIBIT, VIZ., XKDLXSf 
PUNISHMENT; FROM FACTS AND CONSIDERATIONS WHICH, INDEPENDENT 
OF DIRECT SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY, APPEAR TO MY OWN MIND, CONCLU- 
SIVE PROOFS THAT THE PUNISHMENT OF THE WICKED, IN A FUTUB* 
5TATE, WILL BE ENDLESS. 

1, The first argument in support of this proposition, will be dravm 
from the constitution and fitness of things. 

No creature which God has made, can be happy, unless the ob- 
jects of its pursuit, and the sources from whence it seeks for happi- 
ness, are suited to the capacities of its nature. 

The various kinds of the brute creation, while unmolested, and 
sufficiently provided for, lie down or range abroad, and attain the 
summit of that enjoyment of which their nature is capable. But 
they are uneasy when out of their place, though in a situation that 
pleases other creatures. 

Man is possessed, in common with the brute, of an animal nature. 
This is satisfied only in those objects of pursuit from whence arisee 
a gratification that is suited to his animal desires. 

Man is possessed also of an intellectual nature, which is gratified 
according to his peculiar turn of mind, in the various pursuits of 
life adapted to its capacities, from the occupations of the man of 
business, up to the deeper studies of the philosopher. But these 
objects pursued to the greatest extent, and with complete success, 
can only impart that enjoyment which his intellectual nature is ca- 
pable of receiving. Something more is yet necessary to render him 
perfectly happy ; for he possesses a constitution of mind still higher 
than mere animal or intellectual being. 

He is a moral accountable creature ; possessing a capacity of 
knowing, loving, serving, and enjoying God as the Source of all 
excellence. And such is the constitution of his moral nature, that 
he cannot be happy without the proper exercise of this capacity* 
any more than any other creature can be supported and rendered 
comfortable out of its element. Hence it is that man is not happy 
in his unregenerate and sinful state. His moral nature meets with 
nothing, amid all the variety of objects which fill his eye, engroue 



7¥ COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect. 4, 

his affections, and occupy his time, that is capable of affording the 
«rjoyment which this nature in its proper exercise is fitted to re- 
vive, and which it is necessary that it should receive in order to 
real happiness. Does man feel perfectly happy, while conscious 
that he is made for another world, he lives only for this ? What 
though he toil from morning to, night with incessant care to lay up- 
a few fleeting treasures ! What though he pants for fame, and ob- 
tains the elevation of office ! What though he indulges in sensual 
gratifications, and in vanity, ambition and pride ! What though hfr 
amuses himself with pictures oi fancy, with fantastic exhibitions, and 
with theatrical scenes, and vain shows! What though he explore 
the fields of literature and science, but does not aspire after moral 
excellence, nor devote his active powers to the glory of his Creator 
and the good of his fellow men ! Does he find any thing like sub- 
stantial bliss in all the objects of his pursuit? An aching void 
within, with a voice that cannot be silenced, demands something 
more to satisfy the boundless desires and fill the capacities of the 
immortal mind. 

By the fall, man's moral nature has become awfully depraved. 
Its energies are not directed towards his Creator, as the source of 
all true happiness ; for " God is not in all his thoughts." The 
objects ot pursuit and the sources of enjoyment suited to his moral 
nature, are by him disregarded. He labors solely for the meat that 
perishes, and rejects that which endures unto everlasting life. He 
hoards the trifles of time, and squanders, or with dire infatuation^ 
rejects the treasures of eternity. Who is there that naturally 
engages in the spiritual worship and service of God, and finds the ra- 
ft delight?- Are not these things the weariness and aversion of 
natural men? Whoever carefully watch the prevailing disposition 
of their hearts, while they seriously contemplate the moral per- 
fections of God, his laws, threatnings and judgments, and their own 
past and present sins, will find a "witness m themselves" to the 
truth of revelation, that " the carnal mind is enmity against God, it 
is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." Hence, 
ik except a man be born again," he cannot take any plea-sure in Godi. 



Uc*. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT, 7T 

nor can God take any pleasure in him. He cannot be subject to th* 
law of God, nor regard his service as a privilege, honor and hap- 
piness. He is a rebel against the divine government, a nuisance 
in the universe of God, incapable of those sublime and rapturou* 
emotions which swell the bosoms of celestial intelligence, an<$ 
altogether unqualified for mingling in their society. Such an indi- 
vidual must be miserable. Change of place will produce no change 
of nature, no reformation of the heart and life. Death is but a 
separation of the soul from the body. Hence every mind will carry 
into the eternal world just that impress which it has at the moment 
of death. We have no warrant to believe that he who dies impeni- 
tent, a blasphemer, a murderer, a hater of God, will have a different 
disposition implanted in him after death. His disembodied spirit 
will enter upon its future and everlasting state of being, with th« 
same dispositions and desires that it had in this life. Were it 
admitted to heaven, it could not relish the company, the work, th« 
worship and the joy of that world. It would have no meetness for 
the inheritance of the saints in light. Its re-union with the body at 
its resurrection will only serve to increase those desires, and per- 
petuate that disposition. It will effect no moral change. For a* 
no description is given in the Bible respecting the change of tb» 
bodies of the wicked, when raised, as there is respecting the bodies 
of the righteous, we infer that no change will pass upon them by 
which they will be improved. In the re-union of a depraved soul, with 
a body whose members will serve only as the instruments of em 
and of suffering, it will follow of course, that misery must be th» 
unavoidable consequence. And this misery must be eternal; for 
such a soul being left to itself will recede farther and farther from 
God, and will go into an eternal separation from his likeness and 
favor. 

From the constitution and fitness of things then it is evident, that 
the soul that sinneth, it shall die. For such is the nature of God, of 
holiness, of happiness, and such is the state of the natural heart, 
that man cannot be either holy or happy, but must eternally depart 
from God unless his nature is changed by the power of divmt 



78 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect. 4. 

grace. And as this change is effected only in this life, those who 
die in their sins must go away into everlasting punishment. 

2. A second proof in support of this proposition will he drawn 
from the evil nature and tendency of sin. Sin is not a breach of 
decorum, nor a violation of the civil law merely, but it is explained 
by the inspired penman to be, "the transgression of the law of 
God." This law is nothing less than his perfect and immutable 
will. It is the great instrument of government and happiness to 
his kingdom. It forms the basis ot the divine administration. It is 
the rule of his conduct towards his rational creatures, and their rule 
of conduct towards him. Its design is to maintain subjection to the 
Ruler of the universe, and thus to diffuse a perfect harmony through 
ail the relations of created intelligences. The government of God 
■is not a government of arbitrary power, but a government of law. 
This law is holy, just and good; holy, as it requires supreme love 
to God, and the same love to our fellow men as we bear to our- 
selves ; just, as being founded in the strictest equity, and admin- 
istered with the greatest exactness ; good, as being equally adapted 
to promote the essential happiness of the creature and the declara- 
tive glory of the Creator. Its requisitions are all equitable and 
reasonable. To transgress this holy and benevolent law then, is to 
rebel against the will of God, to insult the majesty of his throne, 
and to strike at the foundation of his authority, and even his very 
existence. Sin is therefore a direct opposition to God, a perversion 
and misuse of the noblest faculties with which man is endowed, and 
involves in its principle, infinite moral evil. As it is committed 
against a God of infinite excellence, and as it tends to produce 
endless discord, universal rebellion and boundless misery through 
the empire of the Eternal, it must be an evil of infinite magnitude. 
It is an admission of that principle, which could it possibly prevail 
without being checked in its progress, would instigate the whole 
race of creatures to join in rebellion against their Creator, and thus 
to introduce into the whole government of God, universal anarchy, 
misrule, confusion, and every evil work. Now the moral nature of 
an cfFence is estimated according to the excellence of the character 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 79 

against whom it is committed, the circumstances under which it is 
committed, and its tendency to evil. If a child offer an insult to his 
earthly parent, his conduct is much more base than such treatment 
to a stranger. The more wise, the more kind and good the parent, 
the more unnatural and the more hateful is the ingratitude of the 
child. If the offence be committed without any provocation, the 
guilt of it is attended with greater aggravations. Apply this to 
offences, to innumerable provocations committed by dependent 
creatures against a God of infinite purity, unbounded wisdom and 
unequalled goodness, and you will be at a loss to determine how- 
atrocious sach offences are, or what punishment such criminals 
deserve. Again, suppose a formidable conspiracy should be raised 
against the character, life and laws of those who are invested with 
supreme authority in the land, and more especially ifth$t authority 
had always been exercised under the direction of wisdom and good* 
ness ; such an offence would be branded with the blackest infamy, 
and would call for the most ignominious punishment,— for if not 
thus immediately and effectually restrained, it would tend to over- 
throw the government, jeopardize the lives of its citizens, and 
produce the greatest evils to society. Sin, my brethren, is moral 
high treason against the Supreme Governor of the Universe. It is 
a denial of his truth, a disobedience to his commands, a despite to 
his government, a disregard to his threatnings, and a dishonor to his 
name. It is an offence of the deepest die, and committed under the 
most aggravated circumstances. It has a tendency not only to 
tarnish the glory of the Divine Majesty, and to introduce infinite 
evil into his government, but if its will were equal to its power, to 
dethrone the Almighty and strike him out of existence, and to take 
the reins of universal government into its own hands. A being 
who commits such atrocious crimes, is deserving of endless punish- 
ment. If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him, 
but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall intreat for him? 

Is it objected that sin cannot be an evil of infinite magnitude 
because it is committed in the brief period of time which constitutes 
the present life? This objection is not conclusive, because it 






ED COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Let*. 4. 

proves too much, since it supposes that no crime can be punished 
for a longer period than was consumed in the perpetration of it 
But if it be once allowed that a crime may be punished for a longer 
term of time than was consumed in the perpetration of it, the whole 
objection that a creature cannot in a finite life commit such a sin as 
shall deserve an endless punishment, must be given up. For if he 
may in one day meditate, form his plan, and commit a crime worthy 
of a punishment that shall continue a year, he may in one day com- 
mit a crime that is worthy of a punishment that shall continue 
during his life. Hence in determining the duration of punishment, 
no regard is had to the time taken up in the perpetration of the 
crime. Consequently there is no absurdity in supposing that the 
crimes of a finite life may deserve an endless punishment. Who- 
ever has a just view of the moral nature of sin, will respond to the 
sentiments of Eiiphaz the Temanite : " Is not thy wickedness great? 
and thine iniquities infinite ?" Our sins, my hearers, are infinite in 
number, and in enormity. They have been committed against the 
clearest light and the most endearing manifestations of the divino 
benevolence, and must deserve infinite punishment. 

S. The promises of the Gospel in general afford a direct argument 
m favor of endless punishment. These promises are peculiar in two 
respects ; they refer to a peculiar kind of blessings, and to a very 
peculiar character. They comprise a deliverance from all sin, and 
the bestowment of eternal happiness. In establishing this point, I 
shall notice a few of those passages of scripture which bring to view 
the nature of the Gospel promises. 

John says to hi3 Christian brethren, when speaking of the distin> 
guishing love of Christ, " we shall be like him ; for we shall see him 
as he is." Paul assures us, that ^Christ gave himself for us, that h* 
might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar 
people." For this he travailed in soul, and he will "see of the 
travail of his soul and be satisfied." Our Saviour says with respect 
to those who overcome, "that they shall walk with me in white ; for 
they are worthy." The redeemed are represented as before the 
•throne of God, and serving him day and night in his temple, with 



Lb«t.4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT 81 

robes washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. In antici- 
pation of ibis entire freedom from sin, the Revelator uttered the 
following remarkable ascription of praise to the Savior: "Unto hiia 
that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood." To 
show the absolute purity of heaven it is also said, that " there shall 
in no wise enter into it any thing that deflleth, neither whatsoever 
worketh abomination or maketh a lie, but they which are written in 
the Lamb's book of life." These quotations are sufficient to show 
that one of the grand objects of the divine promise is a deliverance 
from all sin. 

The other pequriar blessing included under the promises of the 
Gospel, is eternal happiness. I do not deny that other great blessings 
are promised in the Gosper, but eternal happiness is a peculiar and 
distinguished blessing. Christ has brought "life and immortality 
to light in the gospel." "Godliness is profitable unto all things, 
having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." 
Thus Christians are called "heirs of God, and joiRt heirs with* 
Christ." This proves that their inheritance shall be as enduring as 
his. St. Matthew says that the righteous "shall shine forth as the- 
6un, in the kingdom of their Father." And St. Paul says, that to 
those " who by patient continuance in well doing, seek for glory, 
honor and immortality, God will, render eternal life." " Being made 
free from sin, and become the servants of God, ye have your fruit 
unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." Jesus said to his disci- 
ples, "I am the bread of life— he that cometh to me shajl never 
hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. Whosoever 
drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst; but 
the water that I shall give him, shall be in him a well of water, 
springing up into everlasting life." " The righteous shall* go into 
life eternal." " He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second 
death." These passages with a great variety of others, going U> 
establish the same point, prove beyond a doubt that perfect holines* 
and eternal happiness are the distinguishing characteristics of the* 
promises of the gospel.. 



S2 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect.4. 

These promises, however, are made to a peculiar character. They 
are aot made to mankind in general, a3 are the offers of mercy. 
In all the promises of the gospel, perfect holiness and eternal life 
are proffered to a defined character. It is he that overcometh, that 
shall walk with the Saviour in white. It is to godliness that the 
promise is made not only of this life, but also of that which is to 
come. Those are called children of God in distinction from the 
world, that are joint heirs with Chiist. It is the righteous that shall 
»hine forth in the kingdom of God. It is he that believeth that shall 
he saved, and the righteous shall go into life eternal. It is to them 
who by patient continuance in well doing, seek for glory, honor and 
immortality, that God will give eternal life. Now since the prom- 
ised blessings of perfect holiness and eternal happiness are in their 
application restricted wholly to a particular class of men, termed the 
righteous, believers in Christ, children of God, &c, the inference is* 
unavoidable that all men will not be saved. When it is said that 
to them who by a patient continuance in well doing, seek for glory, 
honor and immortality, God will give eternal life, is it not strongly 
implied that all will not seek glory and honor and immortality ? and 
£0 eternal life will not be given to all ? When it is said " he that 
•overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death," does not this 
promise imply that all who do not overcome shall be hurt of the 
second death ? The scriptures are entirely without force and 
meaning, which contain the promises of holiness and happiness 
and make these promises to a defined character, if they are applicable 
to all. But since these blessings are promised to a defined character, 
it is evident that all will not receive eternal happiness. Many will 
seek to enter in and shall not be able. But if any are shut out of 
heaven, and deprived of eternal happiness, they must of necessity 
remain in a state of unspeakable misery. They must go away into 
everlasting punishment. They do not fall within the terms of that 
definition of character to whom the promises of the gospel are 
made, and must of course be excluded from a participation of the 
promised blessings. 



Lect.4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 83 

4. A fourth proof in support of this proposition arises from the 
benevolent nature of ike doctrine of endless punishment. The doctrine 
of future punishment is a benevolent one. Its benevolence is 
manifest from its design and tendency. Our Lord and his apostles 
speak of the wrath of God as provoked by nothing but impiety and 
immorality. It is the murderer, the thief, the liar, the slanderer, 
the impure, and the impenitent, who have to expect the fiery indig- 
nation, the future tribulation and anguish. The doctrine, terrible as 
it is, leans with its whole stress to the side favorable to virtue. If 
any complain of the severity of the threat, let them abandon their 
evil ways and its severity will not touch them. 

And not only in the preaching of Christ and his apostles is the 
threatening clearly attached to nothing else but a vicious and 
irreligious life, but it is employed in no other way and for no other 
purpose than to enforce the invitations of mercy. 

Thus defined and thus employed, the doctrine, painful and appal- 
ling as it may be, was clearly a benevolent doctrine. And it must 
have been grossly perverted, if in any case it has ceased to deserve 
that commendation. It was at first a benevolent doctrine, and such 
it has been in all ages of the world ; and such it ever will be con- 
sidered to be wherever it is clearly understood. And whoever, 
after the example of Christ the Saviour of the world, spends his 
time, talents and influence in the endeavor to lead his fellow men 
to the arms of the divine compassion, because there remains a 
"fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation" which shall 
fall on the impenitent, is not only not possessed of selfish and 
revengeful principles, but deserves the praise and will win the 
recompense of the highest and purest philanthropy. 

Let no one complain of the severity of this doctrine. Let him 
repent and return to God and it shall be well with him. Thb 
presents a powerful motive for men to humble themselves before 
Almighty God and instantly sue for the pardon of sin. It says, 
" Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his 
thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord and he will have mercy 
upon him, and unto our God for he will abundantly pardon." 



U COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect. 4. 

5. A ffth proof, in support of this proposition, crises from the 
moral perfections and government of God. " God is love" All his 
moral excellences, as justice, truth and holiness, are but modifica- 
tions of this principle. As his nature is holy and opposed to 
whatever is inimical to moral rectitude, his perfections must be 
employed to counteract, lessen and prevent the evil tendency of 
sin to the universe, to exalt his glory, and to promote the best good 
of his everlasting kingdom. For this purpose he rules his accounta- 
ble creatures by a holy and benevolent law. The lav/ of infinite 
rectitude forms the basis of his administration, and the universal 
rule of right and wrong for the government of his subjects. 

It is essential to the salutary influence of all laws, that they should 
be guarded with a penalty. Without this sanction they would 
contain nothing more than advice. And as no blame would be 
attached to an individual for refusing to follow the advice of others, 
so no punishment would ensue from such a course. Consequently, 
the law of God without this sanction would not forbid us to love the 
objects of this world more than his infinite excellence, to reject the 
appointments of his wisdom, to dispute the authority of his govern- 
ment, and to introduce confusion and every evil work into his fair 
creation. Hence the law of God is clothed with a most tremendous 
penalty. And the dignity and stability of the divine government 
require that this law should be implicitly obeyed ; and if obedience 
be withheld, that the penalty should be inflicted upon the 
.transgressor. 

This point may be illustrated by the following remark : Good 
will to the citizens of any government, requires that the constituted 
authorities should take all proper measures for the execution of 
justice on offenders in conformity with the spirit of the laws, and 
for the general good of their constituents. Should they tacitly 
permit the laws to be violated with impunity, they would invite 
disobedience, and would suffer the peace and good order of society 
to be destroyed. Such conduct would be an expression of the 
highest malevolence to that government, the best interests of which 
it was their duty to protect and promote. It follows that the same 



-Lect.4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. U 

principle of benevolence which in any good government will lead 
the constituted authorities to enact the best code of laws, will lead 
them also to call to account and inflict due punishment upon those 
who should obstinately refuse submission to these laws. 

Let this remark be applied to the moral government of God, and 
it will satisfactorily appear that he cannot suffer sin to go unpun- 
ished. Did he not invariably execute the penalty annexed to hi* 
law, the whole universe would be thrown into a state of anarchy and 
confusion. God is love, and he manifests his benevolence as would 
a supreme magistrate, who calls public offenders to justice and 
inflicts on them the penalties of the law. 

Human minds are so linked together in this state of being that 
ire almost necessarily transmit our characters, sentiments and 
dispositions, from one to the other. An evil example, or a corrupt 
sentiment, may be lodged in the mind of an individual and produce 
fruit an hundred fold. This one person, corrupted, communicates 
the poison to his associates, and they again to theirs, and thus it 
may go on and increase from generation to generation; and its 
influence may surpass all power of calculation. It may extend 
beyond the sphere of human society, and reach beyond the bounds 
of time. Who can say,that if its progress were not arrested, it would 
not continue to extend its influence to the remote ages of eternity? 
So this one mind, corrupted, may become the centre of a vortex 
which shall draw into its voracious gulf, millions of millions of 
immortal minds. Such wide and wasting ruin may be the extended 
result of one evil example or corrupt sentiment. Hence the pun- 
ishment of those who have set the laws of God at defiance, is 
appointed as an example to the rest of creation. Their offence 
being infinite, as it is the violation of an infinite obligation, and as 
it tends to produce infinite disorder to the government of God, it is 
necessary that the expression of his abhorrence of their crime 
should be proportionate to its malignity. Such an expression was 
the death of Christ. But this avails only on behalf of those who 
are by faith personally and savingly interested in the merits of his 
death. All who do not possess this temper of mind and tenor of 

H 



86 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect 4, 

life, must be " set forth as examples suffering the vengeance of 
eternal fire," and thus like enemies and traitors to a human govern- 
ment, be made to answer such an end by their death as shall 
counteract the evil influence of the example afforded by their life. 

6. Jl sixth proof of the truth we are noiv considering^ is most 
strikingly manifested in ths death of Christ. His tears and groans 
and blood on Calvary, all proclaim " the soul that sinneth it shall 
die." That God, consistently with his official character as moral 
Governor of the universe, might bestow the riches of his grace upon 
penitent sinners, was one principal object in the mission of our 
Saviour to earth. All mankind had transgressed the divine Lrw, 
and the punishment of this transgression had been rendered indis- 
pensable. It would be inconsistent with the divine perfections to 
suffer the law of God to be violated with impunity. It would have 
an unfavorable bearing upon the divine holiness, law and govern- 
ment. It would imply that God did not regard the transgression of 
his lav/ as an atrocious evil. But sin wag an evil of such a magni- 
tude, so heinous in the divine mind, that a holy God could not suffer 
it to pass without an adequate testimonial of the abhorrence in 
which it was held by him. 

But how great an evil, let me ask, was it esteemed in the sight 
of the omniscient Jehovah ? What sacrifice must be made, rather 
than that it should in any instance be pardoned without an adequate 
satisfaction ? This w r e learn from the event. The sacrifice which 
God made was no less than the Son of his love, an innocent victim, 
given up to suffer and die the accursed death of the cross. Nothing 
short of this could have afforded an adequate expression of the 
malignity of sin. Could its foul stain have been removed and its 
everlasting consequences prevented at a cheaper rate, surely the 
only begotten Son of God had not poured out his soul unto death 
for the remission of sins. It is the characteristic of infinite wisdom 
to expend no more upon an object than its attainment requires. 
Hence we must believe that Christ suffered no more than was 
necessary to satisfy the claims of justice and to procure our pardon 
and justification, Here then the demerit of sin is to be learned 






Lect.4.) ESS PUNISHMENT. 87 

Jesus Christ, an inn victim, the object of the Father's ever- 

lasting love, pmst suffer end die, not an ordinary death, but the 
ignominious tortures iiixion. He must suffer all that Omnipo- 

tence could inflict bat human nature, supported by divinity, 

could endure. e view the intense agonies of the Son of 

God, in the g smane and upon the cross, we see the 

infinite evil of sin. 

But the sttfi th of Christ does not constitute the 

sinner any in re :ct of the divine favor, nor any the less 

deserving of punishment. Sin is sin still. The death of Christ 
instead of lessening, has enhanced the evil of sin. For this is our 
"condemnation that light is come into the world and men love 
darkness rather than light." — (John 3: 19.) Sin is now an evil of 
greater magnitude, as it is committed against greater light and love 
than it would have been had not Jesus died. And the sinner is still 
in the hands of justice, and is exposed to that awful punishment 
which is so strikingly manifested by the death of Christ* 

7. The doctrine of endless punishment may be argued from the 
joy of angels over Viz repentance of sinners. "I s.ay unto you, that 
likewise joy shell be in heaven ever one sinner that repenteth, more 
than ninety and nine jest persons which need no repentance." — 
(Luke 15: 7.) " There is joy in the presence of the angels of God 
over one sinner that repenteth." — (Luke 15: 10.) It is a ^principle 
of human nature, that the recovery of an object in danger of being 
lost, affords much more joy than the o x uiet possession of one that is 
safe. This our Lord illustrated by the case of the lost sJieep and of 
the piece ofsilv&r* It might be illustrated by many other facts and 
considerations. On this same principle, there is joy io heaven 
among the angels of God over those who repent on earth. Itcaanot. 
be implied that there is more joy in heaven over one penitent sin- 
ner, than over ninety and nine self-righteous Pharisees; for these 
last would cause that holy society to weep rather than to rejoice. 
The sense is, there is more joy over one penitent sinner than over 
ninety and nine (or over however many) really just persons, such as 
the Pharisees supposed themselves to be. Our Saviour did not 



U COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect. 4. 

Mtean to imply that there were any just persons on earth, who need 
ao repentance. There never have been any, and there never will 
Ve any.— (EccL 7 : 20— Psl. 14 : 2, 3— Rom. 3 : 10-38.) He meant 
merely, that angels rejoice over the repentance of one sinner more 
fchanTthey do over many just ones like themselves who have never 
waned. But why this joy of angels over those who repent of their 
«ms on earth ? They see the guilt and danger of men — they know 
what God has done for them, and they rejoice at the recovery of any 
from the ruins of the fall. Angels whose opportunities of observing 
and capacities of judging are vastly superior to ours, know of how 
much value is the immortal soul. They know that every sinner 
must perish unless he repents, and they rejoice at his repentance 
because it brings him back from the love and service of sin to the 
love and service of God, and because it will deliver him from a 
•ourse of eternal sinning and suffering, and raise him to glory and 
honor and immortality. Were not the souls of men of immense 
Talue — were they not in imminent danger of being lost — and were 
not this loss irretrievable — would angels thus rejoice over the re- 
pentance of sinners ? Surely not. But they know what is meant 
by eternal death, and hence their deep feeling and intense anxiety 
about the soul that can never die. And hence their joy over the 
repentant sinner. 

8. The unutterable anxiety which inspired men felt for the conver- 
sion of sinners, is a further proof that the fate of those who die in 
their sins will be inconcievably dreadful. The adage is just, that 
" actions speak louder than words." The apostles preached and 
prayed and labored as though they were deeply concerned for the 
salvation of men. They earnestly desired and fervently prayed that 
sinners might be converted. Take for example the apostle PauL 
He wept over the " enemies of the cross of Christ," who minded 
only earthly things, and whose end he feared would be destruction. 
It was his heart's desire and prayer to God that his brethren, the 
Jews, might believe in Christ as the true Messiah, and be saved. 
He had great heaviness and continual sorrow of heart, and was 
willing to make any sacrifice, however great, if he might thereby 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 89 

promote the salvation of men. Such was the conduct of Paul. The 
reason for his conduct he has in one instance assigned. " Knowing 
therefore the terrors of the Lord, we persuade men." — (2 Cor. 5:11.) 
Here we learn that the apprehension he had of the terrors of the 
Lord, was the cause of his solicitude and exertion in persuading 
men. By this terror of the Lord, he could not mean some evil to 
be suffered in this life by those who should not regard his persua- 
sions. He had been citing his brethren to the judgment seat of 
Christ, where all must appear and receive the things done in the 
body according to that they have done, whether they be good or 
bad. It was doubtless this terror of the Lord, revealed at the judg- 
ment, which induced him to persuade men. 

But waiving this point, suppose the terror of the Lord meant 
nothing more than temporal judgments, inflicted on those who 
rejected the gospel. Then we have the apostle exhausting the 
energies of his mind and body in labors, dangers and sufferings, to 
persuade men away from some possible safferings that they might 
experience in the present life, if they did not repent; and to per- 
suade them to encounter the more sure and severe calamities that 
were the inevitable lot of the Christian. Further, if Paul knew (and 
he did know it if true) that all men would be eventually saved, 
would he not have told the world that it was not from the considera- 
tion of the terrors of the judgment seat of Christ, that he was 
induced to persuade men ? The terror, on this supposition, would 
not be from rejecting the gospel, but from receiving it, which 
exposed a man to temporal dangers. The apostle then ought to 
have said, knowing the terror of bonds and imprisonments, the rack 
and the btake. which those must experience who repent, we per- 
suade men not to embrace the Christian religion. The terror was 
on the other side of the question. It was the receiving and not the 
rejecting of the gospel, that exposed a man to temporal dangers. 
Hence if Paul labored solely to promote the temporal welfare of hi* 
fellow men, to be consistent he must have persuaded them not %o 
embrace that religion which led to labors, dangers, and suffering. 

On another occasion, giving an explanation of the reasons of h'm 



90 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Iect. 4. 

conduct, he says, "that he might by all means save some" Paul was 
anxious not only to conduct himself so as to secure the salvation of 
his fellow-creatures, but that all to whom the treasure of the gospel 
was committed should do the same. This is apparent from his ad- 
dress to Timothy : iC Take heed unto thyself and unto thy doctrine ; 
continue in them : for in doing this, thou shalt both save thyself and 
them that hear thee." Now, upon the supposition that Paul knew 
that all men would be saved, it is strange that he snould manifest 
this solicitude about it. It is not natural for mankind to be anxious 
for an event to take place, which they know cannot be prevented. 
We see no one anxious lest the sun should not continue to rise and 
set, and the seasons observe their appointed successions. And the 
reason is obvious. All men are satisfied that the sun will continue 
to rise and set, and the seasons observe their successions, as they 
have done. Now, if Paul knew, (and if it is a truth, he did unques- 
tionably know it,) that all men would be saved, why this anxiety 
respecting their salvation ? His conduct can be accounted for, only 
on the supposition that he considered his hearers to be in eminent 
danger of being finally lost 

If it be replied, that his efforts were to save men from the trou- 
bles of this life ; I would ask, if his converts were wont to experi- 
ence that kind of salvation ? Did he expect they would ? Did he 
not rather tell them, that all who will live godly in Christ Jesus, 
shall suffer persecution ? From what else, then, did he labor to 
save men, but from the "everlasting destruction from the presence 
of the Lord and the glory of his power." Here was an object 
worthy of the labors of an apostle. 

But, suppose Paul had actually devoted his life to the spread of 
the gospel that held out universal immunity from punishment in the 
future life ; would not his course of life and tone of preaching have 
been far different ? Those who preach such a gospel, to be con- 
sistent, must labor to convince men that hell is a chimera, and 
heaven the sure portion of the sinner as, well as the saint. And 
was this the main point to which the labors of Paul were directed ?~ 
Were all the energies of his soul, directed to the purpose of per- 



Lect.4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT 91 

suading men that there was no hell, no wrath to come, and that 
every course of sin was sure to end in heaven ? Was he careful 
to make it appear that the damnation of which he sometimes spoke, 
meant nothing more than temporal evils ? No. The precepts and 
examples of Paul, then, are every way, a standing evidence of the 
doctrine of endless punishment. 

9. Another proof of the doctrine in question, is derived from its 
tendency to produce genuine practical piety. " Every good tree 
bringeth forth good fruit ; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil 
fruit." The characters of men are known by their conduct, and by 
their influence upon society. We have no other means of judging 
of the characters of individuals. Just so we say, there is no other 
criterion by which we may test religious systems, than by their 
effects upon those who embrace them. And we judge that religious 
system most accordant with truth and sound principles, which pro- 
duces the best practical results. 

Now, that system which holds the doctrine of eternal punishment 
leads many persons to come out from the world by an open and public 
profession of their faith in Christ. It is an undoubted requisition 
of Christianity, that men should unite themselves in a distinct body, 
known as a Church. The apostles, and early christians, did thus 
unite themselves together, by their own voluntary consent. Saul, 
after his conversion, essayed to join himself to the disciples. They 
received the ordinances of the gospel : Baptism, and the Lord's 
Supper. They had elders appointed, and deacons chosen; and 
persons were publicly excommuaicated when they departed from 
the faith, or habitually violated the precepts of religion. Ever 
since the establishment of the Christian religion, there has been a 
public profession of faith, and a regular organization of churches, 
wherever religion has prospered. At the present time, that system 
which holds the doctrine of eternal punishment, leads mulitudes to 
come out from the world, and to publicly profess their faith in Christ. 
Nor does it produce this result in those places merely, where this 
doctrine is popular; but it plants churches in the midst of opposition 
and reproach, and induces those who embrace Christ, publicly to 



93 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lbot.4. 

profess Lis name and to endure reproach for his sake. Where is 
there a parallel to this, among those systems of religion which re- 
ject the doctrine of endless punishment? Wherever they the 
more extensively prevail, there is the less of religious profession. 
Look over the country, and you will find but very few who have 
been led by these systems to come out from the world and profess 
religion. When Paul went to a certain place and preached, many 
believed and were baptized. He organized a church, appointed its 
proper officers, and went to another place ; and the same results 
generally followed. It is so still, in very many places where those 
ministers preach who hold the doctrine of endless punishment. 
Here is an evidence that this is the true doctrine. 

Again, that system which holds the doctrine of eternal punish- 
ment, leads io a life of prayer, and to active exertion to send the gospel 
to the destitute. There is scarcely any one duty more powerfully 
enforced, and more frequently insisted on, in the New Testament, 
than the duty of prayer. Our Saviour frequently inculcated this 
duty, and enforced it by his own example. The apostle Paul fre- 
quently instructed his fellow-christians to pray always with all 
prayerjj; and the disciples are frequently represented as convened 
together for a prayer meeting. Now, observe the fact, that very 
many of those who believe in endless punishment, do actually pray 
in the public assembly, in the social circle, in their families, and 
maintain secret devotion. Believers in endless punishment do now 
frequenly convene together for the purpose of prayer. But on 
what occasions do the objectors to endless punishment hold prayer 
aseeting? And is neglect of prayer a fruit of correct views of 
religion ? Rather, is not that the true system of religion, which 
leads to a life of prayer ? And does not the doctrine of endless 
punishment, as held by the Orthodox, produce such a result? This 
doctrine also leads to active exertion. It will not be denied that our 
Saviour felt a spirit of compassion for the spiritual welfare of men. 
This led him to leave the highest throne above, and to submit to 
the cross of deepest woe. The apostles, richly imbued with his 
spirit, went every where preaching the word. They endured many 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 93 

labors, dangers, and sufferings. They counted not their lives dear 
unto themselves, if they might finish their course with joy, in testi- 
fying the gospel of the grace of God. 

Now the same spirit prevails in some good degree among those 
who hold the doctrine of eternal punishment, — some have given 
their property, others have relinquished their fortunes, friends, 
country and all, for the sake of bearing the glad tidings of the gos- 
pel to the ends of the earth. Now what society of objectors make 
such sacrifices to send the gospel to the destitute ? No one can be 
found. And have not those denominations who are planting then' 
missions all over the heathen world, a better claim to be considered . 
as actuated by the spirit of Christ than those who stay at home and 
oppose this work ? Again, that system which maintains the doctrine 
of endless punishment, often reclaims men from vicious habits and 
from a life of sin. The Methodist missionaries among the Indians 
of Canada, inform us that of an extensive tribe where drunkenness- 
extensively prevailed, almost the whole body of the people have 
been led through the sanctifying influence of the gospel, to abandon 
wholly the use of intoxicating stimulants. When David Brainard 
preached the gospel to our western Indians and they felt its heavenly 
influence, they abandoned their habits of witchcraft, drunkenness, 
and idolatry, to which they had been wholly addicted. And 
wherever the gospel has been preached by the Orthodox in Christian 
or heathen lands,, and has been believed, it has produced an entire 
reformation in the heart and the life. Now does the opposite 
system often reclaim men from vicious habits and from a life of sin? 
I have seen the objectors to endless punishment converted to a 
belief of this system, and on this change taking place, I have seen 
a happy change in their moral deportment. But can an instance be 
found in which a devout, and humble, and consistent believer in 
endless punishment, has become more pious and heavenly by reject- 
ing that doctrine and embracing the opposite scheme. The process 
is something like this : They neglect the private and public duties 
of religion ; leave the communion table and the conference room ; 
fall into some habitual vices, and then embrace a svstem which 



94 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lect. 4. 

advocates the salvation of all men. You will often hear it said of 
an individual, that a few years ago it was thought that he experienced 
religion. But since he has become vicious, he has been excommu- 
nicated from the church and joined with the Universalists. But 
you never hear the reverse of this with respect to any one. Here 
then is a further evidence that that system is the* true one which 
corrects the habits and reforms the life. 

Once more, — the system which holds the doctrine of endless 

punishment, never occasions distress in a dying hour ; while its 

opposite frequently hads to the most distressing apprehensions on a 

dzalh bed. I do not say that all the objectors to endless punishment 

find their foundation to fail them in a dying hour. They may 

sometimes die in peace. Men whd have been ardently attached to 

a theory like theirs, who are attached to their country, may die 

bravely in its defence. Nor is it pretended that all who embrace 

the opposite system die in peace and triumph. The point to which 

I wish to call your attention is this : — When the objector to endless 

punishment dies in distress of mind, he charges his distressing 

apprehensions upon the character of his religious system; but when 

the believer in endless punishment dies in distress, he charges his 

distressing apprehensions not to the character of his system, but to 

ills nonconformity to its principles. Though he may exclaim, I am 

going to hell, yet he does not disavow the principles he formerly 

embraced. He does not say, this false and dangerous system has 

ruined my soul. He only laments that his life was not conformed 

to its principles. But the objector on his death bed cries out, I am 

going to kcli, and warns his friends not to embrace a religious 

system that has rained his soul. Be disavows it, and declares that 

it will not abide the trials of a dying hour. Is it said that those 

who renounced their belief in the doctrine of universal salvation in 

a dying hour, never really believed it? Well, but there are 

instances efpersens who pretend to believe in future punishment 

who never really believe in it. And why do not they confess their 

hypocrisy in the hour of death? The doctrine of endless punish- 

ment harmonizes with the dictates of an enlightened conscience, 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 95 

and the serious convictions of an enlightened mind in a dying hour. 
These are evidences that it is a doctrine of the Bible, and ought 
to be believed. 

10. The last proof of the doctrine in question which I shall now 
bring, is derived from the facts exhibited in the state of fallen angels, 
and in those of our race who have died in impenitence. Angels who 
kept not their first estate, but sinned against the Most High, were 
cast down from heaven, and are reserved in chains of darkness, unto 
the judgment of the great day, to be punished. Banished from the 
presence of God and the society of the Blessed, they will never 
more enjoy that society, nor behold his face in peace. For them 
no mercy is designed. As they have lost the knowledge, image, 
and favor of the only Source of enjoyment to moral natures, and as 
no mercy is provided for them, they must of course be miserable 
forever. 

Sinners of our race who have closed their mortal career in 
impenitence, are left in the same hopeless condition. While on 
earth, "they were of their father the devil, and the lusts of their 
father they will do," (John 8 : 44.) and now with him they have 
departed accursed into everlasting lire prepared for the devil and 
his angels. 

Such were the antedeluvians, who disregarded the expostulations 
and admonitions of Noah, during the term of God's long suffering, 
while the ark was preparing. The patience of God having been at 
length quite exhausted, he brought in the flood upon the world of 
the ungodly. The deluge came and swept to destruction these 
despisers of the riches of divine grace. 

Such were the inhabitants of Sodom and the other cities of the 
plain. When Lot warned them of their approaching ruin, they 
regarded him as one that mocked. But having filled up the measure 
of their iniquity, "by their unlawfnl deeds," they were swept from 
the earth by a storm of fire and brimstone rained down from heaven, 
and many hundreds of years afterwards were represented by Jude 
as " examples to those who should afterwards live ungodly, suffering 
the vengeance of eternal fire." 



96 COLLATERAL PROOFS OF (Lsex. 4. 

Such was Judas, the betrayer of our Lord, of whom it was said, 
H Good for that man if he had never been born." Such were the 
Jews, who crucified their Lord and then refused to believe on him 
.as the true Messiah. 

Look at these facts to which we have here alluded. Do they ex- 
hibit no marks of God's hatred to sin ; no evidence of his determin- 
ation to punish it in all those who go on still is ther trespasses ? 
•Do they not exemplify these principles and arguments laid down in 
his discourse? Do they not deelare the endless punishment of the 
sinner ? These are facts that cannot be controverted, and therefore 
furnish a practical proof of the endless punishment of the wicked. 

Thus it appears, my dear hearers, from the constitution and fitness 
of things; from the evil nature and tendency of sin ; from the 
promises of the gospel ; from the moral perfections and government 
of God; from the sufferings and death of Christ; from the joy of 
angels over the repentance of sinners; from the unutterable 
anxiety of inspired men for their conversion ; from the tendency of 
the doctrine of endless punishment; and from the facts exhibited 
in the case of fallen angels, and finally impenitent men ; that our 
text is fully established, so far as it is possible for human reason to 
confirm the dictates of Revelation. " The soul that sinneth, it shall 
die." — It & shall go awaj into everlasting punishment." 

From the view which we have taken of this subject, we may 
learn, 

l3t. In. what light mankind should regard themselves, considered 
OfS sinners. That we are all contaminated with sin, but few will 
wholly deny. But it is one thing to acknowledge in general that 
we are sinners, and quite another to have a scriptural view of our 
guilt and danger. While the impenitent will not wholly extenuate 
their guilt, they are grossly and wilfully ignorant of the exceeding 
sinfulness of sin, and of the nature and duration of that punishment 
which is the just desert of the sinner. But in this and the preceding 
lectures, you, my impenitent hearers, have been presented with a 
mass of scripture evidence to prove that dying in your present 
character, endless misery will be your inevitable doom. Nothing' 



Lect. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT, 97 

but alienation of heart, and an unwillingness to come to the light, 
can possibly hinder you from perceiving this testimony which so 
fully exhibits this important truth. Only one positive proof remains, 
which I pray God none of my hearers may ever receive; the actual 
endurance of the pains of hell forever. 

Fellow sinner, your condition is truly alarming. Would you be 
convinced of your guilt as transgressors of the divine law ; would 
you open your eyes to your danger, hanging over the burning billows 
of eternal woe, you could not remain easy until you had obtained a 
satisfactory evidence that your soul had been cleansed, and your 
pardon sealed in that blood which was shed on Calvary for the 
remission of sin. 

2d. Another inference worthy of notice is, that sinners have no 
excuse to plead for presuming that God will not punish them eternally* 
From the nature of the case it is evident, that the sinner, who is in 
supreme love with sin, and who is destitute of the knowledge, like- 
ness and favor of God, must, if left to himself, retain his present 
character, die in his sins., and be forever miserable. Unless Jehovah 
should change, he could not be happy were he admitted to heaven. 
But Jehovah cannot change ; for the least alteration in his character 
would mar its perfection and subvert his moral government. How 
then can the sinner, who has not one qualification for the heavenly 
inheritance, be happy ? From correct reasonings on the nature and 
desert of sin, the perfections of God, and his relation to the universe 
as its moral Governor, it has been proved that the soul that sinneth 
it shall die. From facts and considerations which exhibit these 

4 

■ principles, and from direct scripture testimony, the same truth i3 
clearly exhibited. Have sinners then any excuse for believing that 
the punishment of the wicked will not be endless? Is not every 
ground of excuse covered ? Has not the Lord written their char- 
acter and sentence as with the brightness of the sunbeams ? They 
want not evidence of the truth of our text. 

3d. Again we remark, that this subject furnishes sinners milh a 
powerful motive to induce them to forsake their sins. It not only leads 
them to a just discovery of the evil and demerit of sin, but urges 
l 



98 COLLATERAL PROOFS OP (Lect. 4, 

them to forsake it. And why should they not forsake that which i* 
in itself so vile, and so at war with their own happiness and the 
happiness of the universe ? 

That you, fellow sinners, may not continue in sin till your term 
of probation is closed, and your final destiny is sealed in the pit of 
woe, permit me to point you to the only door of hope. This is the 
Lord Jesus Christ. Behold the compassionate and suffering Jesus 
on Calvary, pouring out his soul in bitter agonies for the expiation 
of sin! Hear the language of my text in his dying groans, "The 
foul that sinneth it shall die !" How strong was his love ; how deep 
was his compassion ! And can you withstand such love, such com- 
passion ! Did the Son of God die for such rebels as we, and can 
you persist in sin and resist all overtures of his mercy ? O surely 
you cannot. Methinks I hear you say, " What a rebel I have been.; 
I have been the most ungrateful creature on earth ; I have sinned 
against the Lord, and wronged my own soul. I see my danger; I 
am under the wrath of God, justly condemned, and deserving of 
eternal banishment from all that is desirable in heaven. 

"My lips with shame my sin confess 
Against thy law, against thy grace ; 
Lord should thy judgment grow severe, 
I am condemned, but thou art clear. 

" Should sudden vengeance seize my breath, 
I must pronounce thee just in death ; 
And if my soul were sent to hell, 
Thy righteous law approves it well. 

"Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord! 
Whose hope still hovering round thy word, 
Would light on some sweet promise there. 
Some sure support against despair." 



L*q*. 4.) ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. *» 

I see a sufficient fullness in Jesus Christ 1 I am overcome with 
thy mercy, Lord Jesus ! I yield and give my heart to God ! I 
believe, help my unbelief! 

" Here Lord I give myself away, 
Tis all that I can do." 

God of all grace, grant of thine infinite mercy, that every sinn«r 
in this assembly may prove himself this humble, sincere, and grate 
ful penitent, and to thy name be all the glory ! Amen. 



IJBCTI7RE V. 

CONSTITUENT PARTS OP THE FUTURE PUNISHMENT 

OF THE WICKED. 

Mark ix : 44. — "Where their worm dieih not, and the fire is not 

quenched" 

This. language is highly figurative. The figures are clearly 
taken from Isaiah lxvi : 24. In describing the future glory, peace 
and prosperity of the kingdom of the Messiah, Isaiah says that the 
people of God shall go forth and look upon the carcasses of men 
who have transgressed against the Lord. Their enemies shall be 
overcome and slain,, and they shall be delivered out of the hand of 
their oppressors, and shall triumph over all their foes. The figures 
are taken from heaps of the dead slain in battle ;. and the prophet 
says that the number shall be so great that their worm which feed* 
upon them shall not die, while there are carcasses to be devoured ; 
and that the fire used to barn the bodies of the dead shall net be 
extinguished till they are consumed. The figures, therefore, denote 
great misery, and certain and terrible destruction. 

By these sensible images our Saviour describes the torments of 
hell, as by the sensible image of reclining upon the bosom of 
Abraham he describes the bliss of heaven. They are intended to 
denote that the destruction of the wicked will be awful, wide spread, 
and eternal. In this sense our Saviour must have been understood 
when he uttered the solemn declaration of our text ; for these 
emblematical images were in use among the Jews to express the 



Lect. 5.) FUTURE PUNISHMENT. 101 

doctrine of future punishment long before the time of our Saviour. 
The son of Sirach says, " The vengeance of the ungodly is fire and 
worms" — Eccl. vii : 17 And Judith says, "Woe to the nations that 
rise up against my kindred ! the Lord Almighty shall take vengeance 
on them in the day of judgment, in putting fire and worms into their 
flesh ; and they shall feel them and weep forever." — Judith xvi: 17. 
Hence our Lord in warning his hearers to part with all occasions of 
gin, however valued, and pressing this duty from the consideration 
of the "Gehenna of fire," ''where their worm dieth not and the fire is 
not quenched,' which is the certain doom of all who persist in sin, 
must have been understood as asserting the common doctrine of the 
day, the doctrine to which they held whom he addressed, and which 
they were accustomed to express in the same terms. 

It is not to be supposed that there will be any real worm .in hell- 
perhaps no material fire. How can a living worm, or an elementary 
fire operate on the soul, which is a spiritual substance. Further, 
the fire must needs be extinguished when the pile was consumed : 
and the worms must die when the food on which they fed failed. 
But our Saviour tells us that the worm of the wicked dieth not, and 
the fire is not quenched. That our Saviour did not mean to be 
understood as asserting or even implying that the wicked would be 
burnt in the valley of Kinnon, is evident from the very language 
of our text, and the source whence he derived it. He quoted the 
phraseology of our text from Isaiah, as we have already noticed. 
And this phraseology as used by Isaiah, did not originate from the 
fires in the valley of Ilinnon ; for the scenes in question never had 
existence in his day. The desecration of the valley of Hinnon by 
Josiah, and of course the use of fires there to consume the offal, 
prevented its breeding a pestilence, did not take place until more 
than sixty years after the death of Isaiah. He must then mean a 
spiritual punishment which would be ioathesome, dreadful, and 
eternal. 

As there is much diversity of opinion respecting what will consti- 
tute th.3 principal ingredients in that cup which will be the portion 
of the wicked in the future world; and as a scriptural view of this 



m CONSTITUENT PARTS OF (Lect, 5, 

subject will serve to illustrate the equity of the divine procedure 
in pimishing the wicked forever ; I shall on the present occasion 
enquire — Of what the punishment of the wicked in the future ivorld 
will consist ? or in other words, what is included in the terms, "Tho 
worm that dieth not," and " the fire that is not quenched.'' 

The gnawing worm and the unquenchable fire which will prey 
ypon the wicked hereafter, includes 

t. Their passions and desires. That these are capable of prey* 
ing upon tlie sinner and occasioning even in this life the most acute 
sufferings, those of you whose passions' and desires are naturally 
strong, need not be informed. They were implanted in our nature 
by our wise and benevolent Creator, to extend the means of our 
happiness, by rendering us more capable of loving, serving and 
enjoying him ; and when directed to proper objects, and under the 
restraining influence of divine grace, they are the sources of inno- 
cent enjoyment. But in consequence of the depravity of our 
natures, and the powerful objects which act upon these passions and 
desires, they are often intemperately excited ; and gathering force 
by gratification, and irritated by the interference of those who pur- 
sue the same objects, they hurry men into every kind of excess — 
burst forth into all the variety of crimes that have prevailed in every 
age and nation, and produce every species of immorality, impiety, 
blasphemy, and of other daring offences against the supreme Gov- 
ernor of the universe. And from their sinful indulgence a great 
amount of temporal suffering is occasioned. In confirmation of this 
I would refer you to facts. Look at the envious man who turns 
pale, and who feels a secret pang when be hears a more fortunate 
rival commended, or sees him successful. Is not the envious mart 
his own tormentor? "Envy slayeth the silly one. — (Job v:2.) 
"Envy is the rottenness of the bones." — (Job xiv : 30.) It consumes 
the flesh, preys -upon the spirits, makes the countenance pallid, and 
is the rottenness of the bones. "Who can stand before envy?" 
Look at the covetous mar, who wears himself out in the pursuit of 
wealth, and \i daily harassed with craving desires and anxious cares. 
Can any worm gnaw like these ? "The love of money is the root 



Lect. 5.) FUTURE PUNISHMENT. 10& 

of all evil, which while some have coveted after, they have erred 
from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 
(Tim. vi : 10.) Their thoughts are busied, their time occupied, their 
attention wearied, the vigor of both their mind and body exhausted, 
and their whole soul immersed in harassing avocations. These 
render them constantly unhappy. Look at the votary of ambition. 
He first aims at some humble office — obtains it, and looks forward 
to one of higher rank. This also being obtained, he is still more 
anxious for another of still higher grade, Thus, like a chariot 
wheel, he heats himself in his career. He endures wearisome days, 
and painful nights, w^hile he eagerly pants for promotion ; but is 
kept down by a more fortunate rival or by some adverse circum- 
stances. He is constantly jealous of a competitor, and his mind is 
full of contrivances to overreach or circumvent his antagonist, to 
humble his rival, and to gain that popular applause which floats on 
the breath of the unthinking multitude. Is there no gnawing worm 
ct work in his breast ? Look at the man of pride and vanity, who 
adores his person and possessions, and attempts to appear before 
others in a superior light to what he is, and who envies the excel- 
lencies that others possess ; is anxious to gain admirers ; is impatient 
of contradiction, and is filled with distress or rage at every real or 
fancied neglect. Is there no corroding tooth at work in his breast? 
Look at the passionate and revengeful man, " who hath no rule over 
his own spirit."' Is not the very bosom of his enjoyment a thorny 
pillow? Look at the drunkard, whose soul is inflamed with intoxi- 
cating potions. Does he not experience unnumbered woes, 
unalleviat.ed sorrows, angry contentions, riotous babblings, and deep 
and cureless wounds? Look at the man of pleasure, who seeks for 
happiness in the ways of transgression, and finds that 

*Each pleasure hath its poison too, 

And every sweet its snare ; '"' 
and you will find fresh proof of this truth. 

It is true that the sinful indulgence of these passions and desirea 
do not render men completely miserable in this life. They are 
often attended with a high degree of mirth and jollity. And when. 



104 CONSTITUENT PARTS OF (Lect.5. 

they would lead from sin to sin and from crime to crime, their influ- 
ence is controlled by counteracting causes. 

But in the future world the passions and desires of the sinner 
will start up into giant strength. All outward and inward restraints 
will be removed. The impenitent and obdurate sinner, who in the 
midst of light and knowledge, with vivid conceptions of his duty, 
has lived without God in the world ; has violated the laws of both 
natural and revealed religion ; outraged the best affections of his 
heart, and trampled upon the dearest interests of mankind ; will 
there rind that his passions and desires are his tormentors. There 
the wicked will find nothing to divert their attention, to raise their 
expectation, or to assist them for a moment in forgetting their 
misery. Every object of desire will now be taken away, while the 
desire will not only remain, but be increased in an inconceivable 
intensity. It seems to be the wise design of the great liewarder, 
to punish his guilty creatures in the world to come with those very 
passions which they have in this life perverted to gratify a depraved 
heart. Hence the punishment of the wicked will be proportionate 
to the number and aggravation of their sins. The glutton and the 
drunkard will be forever tortured with inconceivable hunger and 
thirst. The spiritual sluggard will be incessantly goaded with 
prickling thorns and btirning stings. The envious man will be 
overwhelmed with the pains of disappointed malignity ! O how he 
will envy the saints in light! Their sweet songs — their golden 
harps — their robes of spotless purity — are all materials for the cor- 
rosion of his envy — for the gnawing of that worm which never dies. 
The man of pride will be filled with "shame and everlasting con- 
tempt." The shame of being lost, how insupportable ! Who can 
bear the slow finger of scorn as it points to the guilty outcasts from 
the divine favor ? Where will the sinner hide from the shame of 
his nakedness ? He gathers up perhaps his mantle of self-right- 
eousness, and folds it around him, but alas, it is all filthiness and 
rags. He is ashamed to wear it. He is ashamed of the unholy 
influence which he has exerted — ashamed of his companies in 
guilt— ashamed to look up to that world of light and glory which h% 



Lect.5.) FUTURE PUNISHMENT. 105 

might have inherited— ashamed as he there beholds the saints ia 
glory. And contempt coupled with shame. Oh! who can bear 
contempt ? We shun it as an adder that? biteth. But the portion 
of the wicked will be "shame and contempt." The covetous will 
be straitened with inexpressible want. The man of a jealous dis- 
position will there find that this most cruel and unrelenting of all 
the passions will find full scope. All the fires of hell cannot burn it 
out. The floods of perdition cannot drown it. Those who loved 
cursing — cursing shall come upon them. As all restraints will be 
removed, the passions must rise to the highest pitch of fury ; and as 
there will be nothing to divert them from one object to another, or 
give them that respite which sleep now affords, they must be sources 
of inconceivable misery. 

Nor is this all. Nothing inflames passion more than suffering. 
Men who at other times can preserve an equanimity of temper, 
often become impatient, discontented, and enraged when afflicted 
with pain and sickness, or harassed with losses and disappointments. 
How terrible then will the passions ofthe wicked be enraged by the 
sufferings of a future state, where no respite of pain, no consolation 
of sorrow, no hope in despair can be found; but where they must 
suffer the most extreme anguish forever and ever! O how will 
they curse themselves and rage against their former madness and 
fully, to think of the low delights and criminal pleasures of flesh 
for the sake of which they consented to part with their God and their 
reversion in the skies ! How will they curse God, and look upward 
and blaspheme him because of their plagues! No doubt this prin- 
ciple of malignity which predominates in the hearts of the wicked, 
will be the source of the greater part of that misery they are 
doomed to sutler in the eternal world. We need represent to our- 
selves nothing more horrible in the place of punishment, than by 
supposing that the Almighty will leave the wicked to themselves to 
give full scope to their malevolent dispositions, and " to eat of the 
fruit of their own ways, and to be filled with their own devices." 
The effects produced by the uncontrolled influence of pride, ambi- 
tion, malignant passions, falsehood, deceit, envy, hatred, malice and 



106 CONSTITUENT PARTS OF (Lect. 5. 

revenge, which now exercise a sovereign sway over the hearts of 
the wicked, would be such a3 may be fitly represented by the 
emblems of the " worm that never dies, and the fire that is never 
quenched," and of their necessary concomitants, " weeping, and 
wailing, and gnashing of teeth." Let us sappose many thousands 
of millions of such characters as Nero, Tiberius, Caligula, Antiochus, 
Epiphanes, Hamilcar, Asdrubal, Tamerlane, Mustapha, and Bona- 
parte associated together in a world where no pleasing objects meet 
the eye or cheer the heart; and let us suppose that the malignant 
passions which reigned in their minds during their mortal career, 
still continue to rage with uncontrolled and perpetual violence 
sgainst all surrounding associates : in this case such a scene of 
misery would be produced as exceeds all power of thought. This 
is the society of hell ; this is the essence of future misery. 

2. The gnawing worm and unquenchable fire of which our 
Saviour speaks, includes the understanding of simiers. In this life, 
their understanding is blinded and perverted in consequence of a 
depraved heart. But in the future state it will be cleared and 
enlarged. Then they will " see as they are seen, and know as they 
are known." No mental deception will then be permitted to ba 
indulged. The veil will be torn from every eye, and all objects 
will appear in their true light. That film which now obscures the 
understanding of the wicked, and gives it the wonderful power of 
viewing good as evil and evil as good; and of so changing the 
appearance of objects as to bring itself to view the most atrocious 
crimes with ferocious delight and approbation, will then be removed. 
Every error of the mind which led them to entertain wrong views 
<>f the moral perfections of God, to reject the appointments of his 
wisdom, to despise his word and ordinances, to villify his people 
and to render that homage to the creature which was due alono to 
the Creator, will be refuted and cleared away from the understand- 
ing. O how will this augment the misery of the wicked, to know 
what a heaven of happiness they have lost, and what a hell of 
misery they have procured to themselves ! 



Lect.5.) FUTURE PUNISHMENT. 107 

As their understanding will be cleared and rectified, so ifcs capaci- 
ties will be enlarged, and this will of course increase their capacity 
for suffering. How dismal will it be to the poor outcasts from the 
divine favor, to know assuredly that they have lost their all; their 
eternal well being ; and that they shall never be released from their 
torments. While they hear the weepings, and wailings, and gnash- 
ing of teeth in these regions of remorse, and view the "great gulf 
that is fixed," which must separate them forever from heaven and 
happiness, they will adopt the language of Satan in Milton's Para- 
dise lost 

"Me miserable ! which way shall I fly 

Infinite wrath, and infinite despair — 

Which way I fly is hell — Myself am hell: 

And in the lowest deep, a lower deep 

Still threatening to devour me opens wide, 

To which the hell I suffer seems a heaven.' 1 — (Book iv.) 

3. A deprivation of all future good will be another ingredient in 
the future cup of the wicked. This is the blackness and the darkness 
of perdition ; and alas ! who can bear it ? It is so fearful, so intense, 
«o gloomy, so ceaseless. It is the total eclipse which shuts out all 
light forever — the deep dungeon which immures the soul in eternal 
midnight. Confined to one dreary corner of the universe— sur- 
rounded by the " mist of darkness," " the blackness of darkness" — 
they will be cut off from all intercourse with the regions of moral 
perfection, and prevented from contemplating the sublime scenery 
of the Creator's empire. Oh! who can dwell forever shut out from 
light ? How appalling that dark abyss, where there is no sun, no 
moon, no twinkling star, no coming morn — nothing but the dense 
smoke of the bottomless pit! Nothing can be more tormenting to 
minds endowed with capacious powers, than the thought of being 
forever deprived of the opportunity of exercising them on the glo- 
rious objects which they know to exist, but which they can never 
contemplate. And yet this is but a faint image of what the soul 
must endure forever. As the happiness of the righteous will consist 



108 CONSTITUENT PARTS OF (Lect.5. 

in "seeing God as he is," so it will in all probability form one bitter 
ingredient in the future lot of the wicked, that they shall be deprived 
of the transporting view of the Creator's glory as displayed in the 
physical and moral economy of the universe. 

4. The reflections of the sinner's own breast will in all probability 
form one constituent part of his misery in the future world. Even 
in this world his reflections are often painful. Though he may be 
surrounded by all those gaudy images and fascinating charms which 
make him an object of envy to the unthinking multitude, yet could 
you penetrate the secret recesses of his mind when he has retired 
from the world and communes with his own heart, you would 
discover a gnawing worm. Created and sustained by God, he is 
rationally convinced that he should have a supreme regard to the 
will and glory pf his Creator and kind Benefactor. He reflects 
upon the-many mercies that his heavenly Father has bestowed upon 
him, and of his unmindfulness of the claims of his Benefactor, and 
of the many crimes which he has been guilty of committing against 
him — and his soul is filled with anguish. As a transgressor his way 
is hard. The recollection of the sins he has committed, the mercies 
he has abused, and the golden opportunities he has misimproved, 
often fill his mind with the most painful sensations. 

What then must be the reflections of the sinner when his eyes will 
be opened to all the enormity of his crimes ! These must form a 
dreadful aggravation of his misery in the future state. Then he will 
not be a Nero, reflecting upon his crimes with the blunted feelings 
of a man who could cause hundreds of innocent beings to be covered 
with skins of wild beasts and torn in pieces by devouring dogs; or 
fastened to crosses and wrapt up in combustible garments and set 
on fire; and who could gaze upon the tragical scene with ferocious 
delight; but a Nero contemplating his wanton cruelty with the 
sensibility of a Howard, and the just estimation of moral worth of a 
St. Paul. 

They will then reflect that once they were within the reach of 
mercy, and had life and death set before them. They will reflect 
on the many gospel sermons they have heard, the many ordinances 



Lect. 5.) FUTURE PUNISHMENT. 103 

which they have beheld, the thunders of Sinai which have rolled 
over their heads, and the melting strains of Calvary which have fell 
upon their ears, and how painful will be their reflection ! 

It will be painful to reflect also how easy they might have escaped 
their present misery, and for the sake of what they consented to 
part with their eternal well being. Oh ! how it will gnaw the hearts 
of sinners to know and reflect that they wilfully procured their own 
destruction, notwithstanding there was an abundant provision made 
in the gospel for the salvation of all men who would consent to be 
saved on the terms of the gospel ; and that there was the most vig- 
orous and united efforts made to put them in possession of this 
inestimable blessing ! " Son remember," will be the worm — and 
ohJ how it will sting like a serpent in that thought, " how have I 
hated instruction !" 

5. The gnawing worm and the unquenchable fire includes also 
the consciences of sinners, The reproaches of the sinner's own 
conscience will cleave to the damned as worms to a dead body. 
And the sufferings inflicted by conscience will be even more painful 
than those which are caused by the passions and desires, or the 
intellectual or moral powers of the sinner. Even in this life her 
scourge draws blood at every stroke. You that have ever been so 
unhappy as to wound your own consciences, can bear testimony to 
this truth. You may have changed your climate. You may have 
left the parched regions of the south and gone to the wintry scenes 
of the north; but still the barbed arrow has remained fast in your 
side, and the pain of remorse has followed you through all the 
changes of your abode. What balm can allay the aching of a 
bruised spirit? What art of healing can reach the troubled soul 
that feels with keen anguish the scorpion sting of an infuriated 
conscience ? It was the testimony of this faithful monitor of his 
misdeeds that made the Roman governor tremble before Paul, for 
he was raised above the fear of all human punishment, and that drew 
Judas to despair, madness and suicide. How often have many indi- 
viduals, both in the higher and lower ranks of life, who without any 
.external cause or apprehension of punishment from men, been seized 



110 CONSTITUENT PARTS OF (Lect. 5, 

-frith inward terrors and writhed under the agonies of an accusing 
conscience, which neither the charms of music nor all the delights 
of the sons of men could assuage ! The power of conscience is 
strikingly seen in the history of Belshazzar. This elated monarch 
amid the shouts of long live the King, lifts the golden cup which he 
had taken out of the house of God to his polluted lips, that he might 
crown his dissipation with sacrilegious impiety. The cup passes 
round, and the king with his wives and concubines and a thousand 
of his nobles drink confusion to Cyrus and his army, And now the 
voice of joy and the noise of mirth resounds through the palace. 
The hour is devoted to dissipation and profanity. But it is done. 
The triumphing of the wicked is short. The king lets fall the cup 
from his trembling hand ; his countenance is changed, and his night 
debauchery is turned into unutterable horror — Lo ! the silence of 
death reigns through the palace, and every eye is fixed, and all 
faces gather paleness, as a shadow wearing the appearance of the 
fingers of a man's hand glides along the wall of the palace and 
writes in mysterious characters, " Mem, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin" 
But why this premature distress ? Perhaps yonder inscription 
declares some joyful intelligence of the destruction of their enemies. 
Why then do the thoughts of the king terrify him, and his knee3 
smite one against another ? His terror cannot proceed from the 
sentence of condemnation written on the wall, for he is ignorant 
both of the writing and of its meaning. But he was conscious of 
the wickedness of which he had been guilty, and therefore he con- 
sidered the extraordinary appearance upon the wall as an awful 
foreboding of punishment from that Almighty and Invisible Being 
whom he had offended. Ah ! there are seasons when the ungodly, 
even in their most pr jsperous moments, feel the lash of a guilty 
conscience, and the curse of Cain in their breasts. In their secret 
retirements and fortified retreats, where no eye but the eye of God 
is upon them, and when no hostile invasion is apprehended, they 
tremble at a shadow, and feel a thousand disquietudes from the 
reproaches of a monitor which they cannot escape. 



Lect.50 FUTURE PUNISHMENT. Ill 

" Conscience, the torturer of the soul unseen, 
Does fiercely brandish a sharp scourge within — 
Severe decrees may keep our tongues in awe, 
But to our thoughts what edict can give law ? 
Even you yourself to your own breasts shall tell 
Your crimes, and your own conscience be your hell." 

But her keen reproaches here arel mere whispers compared 
with the thundering voice in which she will speak hereafter. Here 
her voice is often drowned, and her reproaches stifled. Here she is 
often lulled asleep by opiates. But she will not always sleep on 
the myrtle bed. In the future state the sinner will have no means 
of silencing her voice ; and she will speak without interruption or 
intermission. She will be no longer seared or blinded, but will see 
every thing in the clear light of eternity ; and the voice of her 
accusations will be more painful than the sting of a scorpion. 

How painful have been the reproaches of the sinner's conscience 
on his dying bed ! The guilt, the fear, the horror w T hich appeared 
in his countenance — his bitter regret, and the awful forebodings of 
endless misery which seemed to prey upon his mind, have wrung 
with anguish the hearts of all who surrounded his bedside. I have 
been told by persons on a dying bed that the pains of their body 
were extreme, but that their bodily sufferings were nothing in com- 
parison to the anguish of their souls. And a dying infidel has been 
known to exclaim, " Sure there is a God, for nothing less than 
Omnipotence could inflict what I now feel !" What then must b« 
the pangs inflicted by the reproaches of conscience in eternity? 

6. Another ingredient in that tup which will be the future 
portion of the wicked is the power of recognition. As we have 
satisfactory evidence that the happiness of departed saints consists 
partly in the knowledge which they have of each other's btessedness, 
so we have sufficient reason to conclude that the misery of hell 
consists partly in the knowledge which lost souls have of each 
other's doom. The man who employed his talents in ridiculing 
others because they were serious, and thus occasioned them to stifle 



J12 CONSTITUENT PARTS OF (Lect. 5. 

their serious impressions ; who allured the thoughtless and inexpe- 
rienced into scenes of mirth and dissipation ; or tempted them to 
become deistical or profane ; or who induced them to embrace per- 
nicious and fatal errors in principle and in practice^ may find when 
it is too late to repent his folly, that these victims whom he has 
ridiculed and deceived, are his tormenters. The wailings of those 
deluded, unhappy beings,, and their angry curses that they will heap 
upon the instruments of their ruin,, will add a pang to the keenness 
of that anguish which he will he called to endure. The frowns and 
bitter accusations of companions in woe will fill up the measure of 
his sorrows. No doubt those who have been leaders in wickedness^ 
and have by precept or example led others to become infidel in 
sentiment and profligate and impious in practice, and thus ruined 
them for time and eternity, will be rendered most miserable by the 
reproaches and bitter accusations of those v/hom they have ruined. 
No doubt many admired writers who have already passed into the 
unseen world, would wish to come back and publish a recantation 
of their sceptical, heretical, and licentious works. No doubt many 
play-actors would desire the opportunity on earth of acting a differ- 
ent part on the stage from that by which they inflamed the unhal- 
lowed passions and corrupted the morals of mankind. No doubt 
many miniature painters would wish to come back and give a differ- 
ent coloring to those obscene pictures by which they have ruined 
many souls. No doubt many false teachers would now be willing 
to come back and publish and defend a more orthordox creed than 
that which they once preached. For men will be accountable for 
all the effects of their conduct, however widely they may spread, 
and however disastrous may be their consequences. Oh ! how 
great will be the agony of that despair when the poor outcasts from 
the divine favor shall hear the groans and shrieks and lamentations, 
of their wretched companions in woe. Companions in sin must be 
sharers in punishment as tares bound in bundles for the flames. A3 
heaven is represented as a social state,, and as much of the bliss of 
glorified saints will result from social intercourse, so the society of 
the wicked will be an aggravation of their misery.. And as the 



Lect. 5.) FUTURE PUNISHMENT. 113 

tares bound in bundles and burned in that capacity, will increase 
the fury of the flame that shall consume each individual tare, so 
must the wicked be a torment to each other in a future state. O 
"Lord gather not my soul with sinners," but let it be bound in "the 
bundle of life with the Lord!" 

7. Once more. Another constituent part of future punishment 
is the ivrath of God fastening upon a guilty conscience. What must 
it be to see yourselves surrounded by a just and holy God and to 
meet his piercing, withering glance, fixed upon you wherever you 
turn your eye! How dreadful to see the eternal God, the Sovreign 
of the universe, who has been through time loading you with his 
favors, for which you have been ungrateful, and which you have 
devoted to the vilest purposes, now regarding you with severe dis- 
pleasure. O this. will be indeed a fire to the soul that shall burn 
to the lowest hell ! a fire that will be felt in all the faculties of the 
soul, when a God of inflexible justice shall avenge himself, his law, 
his Son, his Spirit, and his covenant, on all the despisers of the 
riches of his grace. Oh ! it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands 
of the living God ! Who of us, my hearers, can stand before the 
indignation of the Almighty, whose anger^burns to the lowest hell? 
The anguish of this flame is as much greater than that of any mate- 
rial fire as the Creator is superior to the creature. 

Such I conceive to be the principal ingredients in the future cup 
of the wicked. O then, my friends, be fearful lest after all that has 
been said and done, you should by lamentable experience find that 
your passions and desires, your understanding, your consciousness of 
loss, your refections, the leproaches of your conscience, the recogni- 
tion of your companions in guilt, and the ivrath of a holy and just 
God should constitute a worm that will feed on your souls forever^ 
and be a fire in your breasts that shall never be quenched. 

Do you hope for future happiness ? The foundation of thi3 is 

substantially the same as that which forms the basis of happiness 

in this world. As in the present life there are certain endowments 

necessary for securing substantial happiness, so there are certain 

moral qualifications indispensably requisite in order to prepare us 
J* 



114 CONSTITUENT PARTS, &e\ (Lect.5. 

for the employments and bliss of the life to come. For it is a de- 
cree of Heaven — founded on the moral laws which govern the 
universe, which, like the law of the Medes and Persians, cannot be 
changed — that, " Without holiness no man shall see the Lord" The 
foundation oi future felicity must be laid in " repentance towards 
God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." We must be convinced 
of our inherent depravity as the descendants of the first Adam ; of 
the guilt and demerit of our offences ; of the spotless purity and infi- 
nite rectitude of that Being whom we have offended ; and of the awful 
consequences of unrepentant guilt. We must view the extent and 
purity of the divine law. We must renounce all hope of justifica- 
tion before God, by our works, and must receive with humility and 
gratitude that full and free salvation which is exhibited in the gos- 
pel, and must " behold " by an eye of faith " the Lamb of God that, 
taketh away the sin of the world." We must depend alone on the 
aid of the Spirit to enable us to subdue the corrupt propensities of 
our natures, to renew our souls after the Divine image, and to inspire 
us to abound in all those fruits of righteousness which are to the 
praise and glory of God. And you must give all diligence to make 
your calling and election sure, "by adding to your faith, courage ; 
and to courage, knowledge ; and to knowledge, temperance ; and 
to temperance, patience ; and to patience, godliness ; and to godli- 
ness, the love of the brethren ; and to love of the brethren, love to 
all men. — And thus there shall be richly ministered to you an en- 
trance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus- 
Christ."* This may the Lord dispose you to do ; and to his name be 
all the glory, world without end. Amen. 

* 2. Pet. i. 5—7, 11.— Macknight's Translation. 



IJECTfJRE VI. 
ON THE METHODS BY WHICH MODERN OBJECTORS 

TO THE DOCTRINE OF ENDEESS PUNISHMENT, EVADE THE 

FORCE OF SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY RESPECTING 

THAT SUBJECT. 

Jeremiah xxiii : 16, 17. — " Thus saiili the Lord of Hosts, Hearkeir 
not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you; they 
make you vain : they speak a vision of their own heart and not out 
of the mouth of the Lord. They say unto them that despise me t 
The Lord hath said ye shall have peace ; and they say unto every 
one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, A'o evil 
shall come upon you. n 

On former occasions, I have stated the proofs of endless punish- 
ment. If you have folly examined these proofs, and weighed them 
ns on a dying pillow, you are, I think, reduced to this alternative; 
either to admit the doctrine we have endeavored to establish, or to 
reject the authority of the Bible. The Scriptures, as we have 
already shown, do, in a variety of instances, and in the most une- 
quivocal manner, assert the endless punishment of the wicked. 
Now, if they do at the same time assert the contrary, they must be 
regarded as a medley of absurdity and contradiction, and ought to 
be rejected as an unsafe guide in matters of faith and practice. A 
book, which is calculated in its nature and tendency to lead men 



116 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.6. 

astray in an article of vital importance to their present and future 
well-being, ought to be put out of their hands,, and consigned to 
oblivion. 

Indeed, it may be fairly questioned whether the objectors to 
endless punishment, have much respect for the authority of the 
Bible. Do they not often question the credibility of portions of 
Scripture history ? and are not their views of its authenticity and 
divine inspiration very vague and undetermined ? True, they 
admit the testimony of Scripture when they think it favors their 
views ; and what class of errorists do not the same ? But they seem 
to find but little difficulty in rejecting it, when it is against them. 
Do they not, when closely pursued and driven from all their sub- 
terfuges by the force of Scripture arguments, frankly confess often- 
times, that they do not believe all that the Bible says? 

Hence it is a fact, that Infidels and Atheists rejoice in the spread 
of those sentiments peculiar to the objectors in question, as being 
favorable to their views ; and they are generally the advocates and 
supporters of these several denominations of objectors, when they 
advocate and support any. In all our towns and villages where 
they are not sufficiently numerous to organize themselves into a 
distinct society, they are at the present day extensively uniting 
their efforts with these several denominations, giving their money 
to erect meeting-houses ; to educate and support ministers ; to en- 
dow colleges and Theological schools ; and to aid in the circulation 
of their religious publications. And this they do, as they have in 
some instances acknowledged, not because they believe in the dis- 
tinguishing sentiments of these religious sects, but because they 
regard them as best adapted to prepare the way for what they deem 
the best of all ; barefaced Deism, and downright Atheism. Abner 
Kneeland, that apostle of Infidelity, who was once a distinguished 
Universalist preacher, thus describes the difference between hia 
former sentiments and those which he holds at the present time : 
"The difference between these Ultra Universalists, as Adin Baliou 
calls them, and us Free Inquirers, is nothing more than a dream of 
the imagination, against which we shall not contend, and for which 



Lect. 6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 117 

there can be no real objection in not contending." I know that 
Universalists will be offended at this, and say it is not a fair repre- 
sentation of their sentiments. But let them show by facts and 
arguments, and by their fruits that they are here misrepresented ; 
and that their sentiments are not substantially the same as those of 
the Free Inquirers. Until this is done, we shall believe that Uni- 
versalism not only has a tendency to Infidelity, but is a species of 
it. This same remark might, with the strictest propriety, be exten- 
ded to other classes of objectors. They all maintain the doctrine 
of philosophical necessity, or fate, and the sufficiency of human 
reason, independent of Revelation, to ascertain what i3 truth. They 
deny the doctrine of total depravity of human nature ; the divinity, 
incarnation, and vicarious sufferings of Christ ; the doctrine of the 
Trinity, future judgment, and endless punishment. And they sus- 
tain their sentiments by positive assertions, dexterous sophistry, 
and false principles of interpretation. In these and many other 
points there is a striking analogy between these objectors,- and. 
Infidels. 

I grant that these religious sects, who deny the doctrine of end- 
less punishment, profess to regard the Bible as the^word of God-L 
But do they not deny in practice what they admit in theory ? Do 
they not give painful evidence, in treating the sacred Oracles with 
levity, and by asserting that they contain mistakes in philosophy^ 
errors in chronology, and discrepancies in historical facts ; that 
their professed veneration for the Bible is a mere garb which they 
have stolen from the sanctuary, by means of which they may the 
better deceivG those who are " willingly ignorant" 2 Even when 
they recur to the Scriptures in proving or defending their favorite 
systems, how is the sacred text tortured to make it speak what was- 
never intended by the Holy Ghost! This passage and that, they 
will tell us, have a figurative meaning, and then they assume the 
prerogative to understand the figure as they please. Thus they can 
make the Scriptures mean anything or nothing, just as it suit-^ their 
systems ? I do not deny that there are figures and metaphors in 
the Bible, and some of them* in the Old Testament especially, difil- 



J 18 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 6. 

cult to be understood. But for men to suppose a figure in the Bible 
when they please, and then explain it as they please, with no refer- 
ence to the rules of language or of criticism, is trifling, and impious. 
To explain away the Scriptures in this manner, carries every unbi- 
assed, reflecting mind to the conclusion, that those who do it, pro- 
fess a veneration for them only for the purpose of the more success- 
fully hurling their poisoned arrows against vital piety and experi- 
mental religion. That this is not a groundless charge, is manifest 
from their endeavors to evade, set aside, or wrest the Scriptures, 
which teach the doctrine of future and endless punishment. 

I. One method by which they evade the testimony of these scrip- 
tures is, BY ADOPTING FALSE PRINCIPLES OF INTERPRETATION. 

A false principle of interpretation they adopt in relation to the 
terms evti'lasting^etejmal, forever, and forever and ever. Because these 
terms are sometimes used in a figurative sense, and applied to things 
which have an end, they maintain that they invariably have a limited 
meaning when applied to punishment. The rule of interpretation 
generally adopted by the great body of them is, "that where a word 
is used in relation to different subjects, the subject itself must 
determine the meaning of the word." By this expedient, all those 
passages of scripture in which the words " everl acting, eternal, for- 
ever and ever,"' as applied to future punishment, are found, are set 
aside. And they require that there be something in the nature of 
this punishment which necessarily leads us to receive the Greek 
word aion, and its derivative aionios, in an endless sense ; " since it 
is not the word but the subject which gives the idea of endless 
duration." As words are sometimes used in a figurative as'well as 
a literal sense, I admit that the subject including the scope of the 
writer, should be taken into consideration if we would determine in 
which of these senses the words are used. But for us to determine 
the meaning of a word by one's limited view of what is right and 
wrong, is virtually setting reason above revelation, and openly pay- 
ing to her divine honors. The Bible is altogether superfluous as a 
standard of faith ; for if our reason is infallible we need no other 
revelation. But if we can arrive witli absolute certainty at the 



Lsct.6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 119 

truth of any doctrine of revelation from facts and considerations 
which do not derive their force from express declaration, or which 
are altogether independent of the aid of scripture terms, why criti- 
cise upon them, and why endeavor to invalidate their testimony ? 

Is it said, " we ought to be reasonable men ?" I answer, true ; 
but then only are you reasonable men when you acknowledge that 
God's thoughts and ways are infinitely above ours, and that he must 
be true, though every man is thereby made a liar. The Bible is not 
contrary to right reason, which is nothing less than the will of God ; 
but it is often contrary to the reason of man, who is a creature of 
yesterday and knows comparatively nothing. If not, then man's 
reason is infinite and infallible. 

But if this rule of interpretation, plausible as it may appear, be 
admitted, it will go to subvert every principle of just reasoning. 
On this principle, you may disprove almost any thing that you please. 
Thus should one attempt to prove the divinity of Christ from his 
being called Jehovah, this mode of reasoning would render such 
evidence of no account; because the same appellation is sometimes 
given to temporal objects, as an altar, a mountain, or the Church oj 
God, (Ex. xvii : 15 — Gen. xxii : 14 — Ezek. xlviii : 35) — " and the 
meaning of the word can be determined only by the nature of the 
subject." Were Christ frequently called Jehovah, we could not on 
this principle believe him to be the true God, because the word is 
applied to other things which are known to be temporal. Again, 
should one attempt to prove the omniscience of God from its being 
said that his understanding is infinite; you might reply, that this 
word is sometimes used to express only a very great degree, as 
when the strength of Ethiopia and Egypt is said to have been 
infinite. — (Nahum iii: 9.) Once more ; should one attempt to prove 
the endless existence of God from his beinor called the everlasting 
God; the endless dominion of Christ from its being said that he 
shall reign forever ; and of the endless duration of the heavenly 
inheritance from its being called eternal life; these terms you might 
reply, are sometimes used to express only a limited duration; — and 
thus you might assert that the self-existent Jehovah may be struck 



120 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 6. 

into non-existence ; that the kingdom of Christ may be abolished ; 
and that the happiness of the righteous may come to an end. 
Nothing will stand before such a rule of interpretation. 

To object to the words " everlasting, &c." as being too weak and 
indeterminate in their application, for the purpose of conveying the 
idea of endless duration, is trifling, unless others could be named 
which are more conclusive. Now what terms could have been used 
that would have set the matter at rest? Perhaps it may be said 
that if the word endless had been used, you would believe that 
future punishment is unlimited in duration. But this word is liable 
to the same objections, and falls before the same criticisms. God 
said that there was no end of the store and glory of Egypt — (Nah. 
ii: 9) — the apostle counselled Timothy not to give heed to endless 
genealogies — (1 Timothy i : 4) — and it is common to speak of a 
loquacious person as being an endless talker. Hence it might be 
objected that the term* endless is very indeterminate. 

Suppose our English translation were the original scriptures, and 
the words everlasting, eternal, forever, and forever and ever, were 
used in them as they now are, who of common sense would in this 
case question whether they expressed the doctrine of endless pun- 
ishment ? And yet our words are used in the same metaphorical 
sense, while their literal and proper meaning is that of eternal dura- 
tion. If these words are properly applied to limited punishments, 
why are they not currently used in application to such punishments ? 
But should we call imprisonment for life an everlasting punishment, 
we should have at least the credit of originality. 

Now the only true principle of interpretation, as we have already 
remarked,* is to understand words and phrases in their proper and 
primary meaning, unless there be something in the subject or con- 
nexion which requires them to be understood in a figurative sense. 
Hence we draw the conclusion, as there is nothing in the subject or 
connexion to limit the meaning of the terms under consideration, when 
used to denote the future jiunishment of the wicked, any more then when 
used to denote the endless existence of God ; that they are to be taken 

* Lecture 1, 



Lect. 6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 121 

in their literal and primary sense, which is endless as we have 
already shown*; and that that principle of interpretation which would 
set aside the literal and primary meaning of terms at pleasure, or which 
would lead us to understand them according to our views of the fitness 
of things, is false and ought to be rejected. 

In the same manner the objectors under consideration, evade the 
force of those passages in which the word hell is used to denote a 
place of future punishment. Because the Greek and Hebrew words 
translated hell, do not always denote a place of future punishment, 
they at once assert that they never do. But should it be admitted 
that these words mean only the grave, or a place of punishment in 
this world, and have no reference to the future state of men, will it 
follow that all men will be saved ? By no means. The doctrine of 
endless punishment rests on other testimony, -which would not be 
in the least invalidated by this concession. If it were impossible 
to show that the Scriptures speak of a place in which the wicked 
are to be punished, the fact would not make it at all the less eviderig; 
that they are to be punished. The fact, that the laws of the State 
do not designate the place where persons guilty of capital crimes 
shall be publicly executed, does not make it the less certain that 
they are to be executed in some place. God has said that the wick- 
ed shall "go away into everlasting punishment," and "shall be 
punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord 
and the glory of his power." He who has denounced these threat- 
nings, will be at no loss to find a plase for their execution. But if 
we can show that the Bible not only declares the fact, but desig- 
nates the place of endless punishment, that involves an additional 
proof of endless punishment ; and shows that it is palpably false to 
assert, that the words in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures, trans- 
lated hell, do in no case denote the place and the state of future 
punishment. This, I trust, will be satisfactorily made to appear. 

In doing this, I shall first inquire into the meaning of the Hebrew 
word sheol. This word though frequently used in the Old Testa- 
ment, is seldom translated hell. It primarily signified the place or 

* Lecture 1. 
K 



122 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.O. 

state of the dead. Nor is it incredible, that this word having such 
a primary meaning, should come to be used in a secondary sense. 
Human language is formed by giving names to ideas that are con- 
ceived in the mind through the medium of the senses. But as spir- 
itual objects are not received through that medium, but through 
faith, human language in its original formation had no names for 
these objects. Hence, in deseribing things spiritual and eternal, 
the mind gives to them the name of those objects of sense and 
time to which they seem analogous. From this source originated 
the secondary meaning of the word shcol. The same might be said 
of many other words used as names for spiritual and eternal things. 
Heaven originally meant the visible expanse or firmament alone. 
And for the want of a better word, was in the course of time adopt- 
ed to express the unseen abode of the blessed. We cannot speak 
of the perfections of God without using words in a like secondary 
sease. By the same transfer of language the words lije and death 
are frequently used in Scripture to express the rewards of the 
righteous and the punishment of the wicked. Owing to the poverty 
of human language, and the inequality in the number of words to 
the number of ideas in any language, words are often used in a fig- 
urative sense. This is a settled principle of language which no 
one disputes in form. Now the fact, that sheol did not primarily 
mean a place of punishment, does not weaken the proof that in 
some instances it has that meaning, any more than the fact, that 
heaven did not primarily mean a place of future happiness, prove* 
that word to be never used in this sense. Having admitted that 
the primary and most general use of the word sheol was to desig- 
nate the place and the state of the dead ; I shall now notice some 
passages where I conceive the word is used in its secondary sense, 
to designate a place of punishment. 

Psalm ix : 17. — " The wicked shall be turned into hell (sheol) with 
all the nations that forget God." If sheol in this passage means 
only the place of the dead, what more is threatened against the 
wicked who forget God, than what is endured by the righteous who 
•erve and obey him ? Both alike die and are turned into the grave, 



Lict.6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 123 

and if this is all that is implied by the denunciation, I cannot sec 
the propriety or even the justice of it. Is it said that it is one thing 
to die and another to be cut off by the judgments of God? True. 
But is it not death in both cases ? Sheol in the passage before us 
obviouily implies a pit of destruction in which the wicked and all 
their comforts and hopes shall perish forever ; for their state is con- 
trasted with that of the poor and needy who shall not always be for- 
gotten, and whose expectation shall not perish forever. 

Psalm xlix : 15. — " But God will redeem my soul from the power 
of the grave (sheol)." The subject of this Psalm is the prosperity 
of the wicked in this life and their melancholy end, and the reverse 
which takes place in favor of the righteous at death. How will 
God redeem his people from the power of sheol, if it be not from 
suffering in sheol after death, while death is left to feed upon the 
wicked ? How will death feed upon the wicked in a sense which 
it does not feed upon the righteous, if there be no distinction by re- 
wards and punishments beyond this life ? 

Deut. xxxii : 22 — " A fire is kindled in mine anger, and it shall 
burn to the lowest hell (sheol)" The imagery of the text is that of 
a fire which, kindled on the surface of the earth, should burn even 
to its centre, and according to the general notion of the ancients, 
quite through the place which was peopled with miserable departed 
spirits— sheol here seems to intimate that the wrath of God would 
pursue its objects after death even to the place where the fire is not 
quenched. By the lowest hell is implied that there will be different 
degrees of misery in the world of woe. 

I might cite many other passages in which the term in question 
plainly designates the place of future punishment. But my limits 
will not allow me to be more particular. Nor is it necessary ; for 
these specimens are sufficient to show the use of the word when 
employed in its secondary sense, and that those assert what is falst 
when they say it does in no case denote the place of future 
punishment. 

In proof of the same point, I pass second to consider the meaning 
of the Greek word Hadts. This means literally a place devoid of 



124 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 6. 

light — a dark, obscure abode — and by Greek writers was used to 
designate those dark and obscure regions where disembodied spirits 
were supposed to dwell. It is of the same import with sheol of the 
Old Testament, and is used in the New Testament in the same 
sense. "This place, according to the notions of the Hebrews, was 
a vast subterranean receptacle, where the souls of the dead existed 
in a separate state until the resurrection of their bodies. The re- 
gion of the blessed they supposed to be in the upper part of this 
receptacle, while beneath was the abyss or Gehenna in which the 
souls of the wicked were subjected to punishment."* Josephus in 
his discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades, remarks, " that it is 
a place not regularly finished — a subterranean region, wherein the 
light of this world does not shine. This place is allotted as a place 
of custody for souls. In this region there is a certain place set 
apart as a lake of unquenchable fire, wherein we suppose no one has 
hitherto been cast, but it is prepared for a day afore determined by 
God, in which one righteous sentence shall deservedly be passed 
upon all men ; when the unjust and those that have been disobedi- 
ent to God, and have given honor to such idols as have been i&e 
vain operations of the hands of men, as to God himself, shall be 
adjudged to this everlasting punishment, as having been the causes 
of defilement ; while the just shall obtain an incorruptible and never 
fading kingdom. These are now indeed confined in Hades, but not 
in the same place wherein the unjust are confined." 

"There is one descent into this region, at whose gate we believe 
there stands an archangel with a host, which gate when those that 
are conducted down by the angels appointed over souls, they do not 
go the same way; but the just are guided to the right hand, and 
led with hymns sung by the angels appointed over that place into a 
region of light into which the just have dwelt from the beginning 
of the world. This place we call the bosom of Abraham." 

" But the unjust are dragged by force to the left hand by the 
angels allotted for punishment ; no longer going with a good will,, 
but as prisoners driven by violence, to whom are sent the angels 
* Robinson's CalmeU 



Lect. 6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 125 

appointed over them to reproach them and threaten them with their 
terrible looks, and to thrust them still downwards. Now the angela 
that are set over these souls drag them into the neighborhood of 
hell itself, who when they are hard by it, continually hear the noise 
of it, and do not stand clear of the hot vapor itself; but when they 
have a near view of this spectacle, and of a terrible and exceeding 
great prospect of fire, they are struck with a iearful expectation of 
a future judgment, and in effect punished hereby. Not only so, but 
where they see the place of their fathers and of the just, they are 
hereby punished ; for a chaos deep and large is fixed between them, 
inasmuch that a just man that hath compassion on them, cannot be 
admitted, nor can an unjust man if he were bold enough to attempt 
it, pass over it." 

Hades then, though a general designation of the world of spirits, 
carries with it the idea of future rewards and punishments. It 
occurs but eleven times in the New Testament. That here it does 
sometimes denote a place of future punishment I shall proceed 
to show. 

Matt. xi:23— "And thou Capernaum, which art exalted unto 
heaven, shall be brought down to hell (hades.)" Capernaum was a 
city of Judea highly honored by the person, instructions, and mira- 
cles of Jesus Christ. " Exalted unto heaven," says Dr. Clark, " was 
a Hebrew metaphor, expressive of the utmost prosperity, and the 
possession of the greatest privileges." But she, though thus 
highly favored in point of religious privileges, abused and misim. 
proved them all. "She repented not." Hence our Lord proceeds 
to foreordain her doom. " Shalt be brought down to hell." That 
hades here does not denote a place of punishment in a future world., 
remains to be proved. To my own mind this is included in th* 
threatnings denounced. Our Saviour is citing his hearers to the 
day of final and universal judgment, and assuring them that it will 
be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in that day than for Caper- 
naum. But why ? Because she being cast down to hell, will b§ 
consigned to future punishment. 



126 METHODS OP EVADING (Lect. 6. 

Matt.xvi: 18 — "On this rock will I build my church, and the 
gates of hell (hades) shall not prevail against it." Ancient cities 
were surrounded witty walls. In the gates by which they were 
entered were the principal places for holding courts and transacting 
all public business. Hence the v/ord gates became a name for the 
powers, designSj machinations and evil purposes of the city. Hell, 
which means the place of departed spirits, is here by a figure of 
rhetoric put for fallen spirits there* Thus when it is said that the 
gates of hades shall not prevail against the Church, it is meant that 
all the plots, stratagems and machinations of the devil and his instru- 
ments shall not be able to destroy the Church. Hades is here 
represented as the strong holds of wickedness, and as the central 
origin of all the wicked counsels and enterprises against the Church. 
And if this be true, what can it imply other than the abode of pun- 
ishment occupied by the devil and his angels ? 

Luke xvi : 22, 23 — "The rich man also died and was buried. 
And in hell (hades) he lifted up his eyes, being in torments." Does 
not hades here mean literally a dark obscure place, where departed 
spirits go, and especially the place where wicked spirits go ? The 
following circumstances are related of it in the parable : It is far 
off from the abode of the righteous. It is a place of torment. Be- 
tween it and heaven there is a great and impassable gulf fixed. It 
is represented by torments in a flame. Does it not then mean a 
place of misery, far from heaven, where the wicked shall be punished 
forever? Consequently there is a place of suffering beyond the 
grave — a hell. If there is not, then this parable has no meaning. 
It is impossible to make any thing else of it, unless it is designed 
to teach the doctrine of rewards and punishments beyond the grave. 

What then is the conclusion ? Why, that sheol and hades denote 
the unseen world, into which all men enter at death ; a place of 
happiness to the righteous and of punishment to the wicked. Yet 
the words better express the place of the wicked dead than the 
righteous dead. They convey the idea of darkness, gloom, wan- 
dering ; the idea of a sad and unfixed abode, unlike heaven; Thus 
was sheol understood by the Jews> and thus was hades understood 



Lect.G.) scripture testimony. 107 

by the Greeks. How false then the assertion that hades and sheol 
have no reference to a place of future punishment. Whoever 
asserts this, contradicts the opinions of the Jewish and Christian 
Church, the dictates of common sense, and what is more, the plain 
language of the Bible. 

To the same point I remark, third, that there is another term still 
more expressive than the two which we have just noticed. I refer 
to the Greek word Gehenna. This word, like all others applied to 
the scenes of the future world, was originally applied to what ex- 
isted in this world. It is made up of two Hebrew words and signi- 
fies the valley of Hinnon. It was anciently a pleasant valley, near 
to Jerusalem on the east. Here the idolatrous Israelites establish- 
ed the worship of Moloch, and sacraficed their own children to the 
idol by burning them. In order that the cries of the child might 
not be heard, they made a great noise with drums about the idoL 
These drums were called Toph ; and hence a common name for 
the valley was Tophet. After the return of the Jews from captiv- 
ity, this place was held in such abhorrence on account of the former 
abominations that had been practised there, that, by the example of 
Josiah, (2 Kings xxiii: 10,) it was made the place where to throw 
the carcasses of dead animals, the dead bodies of malefactors, and 
every species of filth. To prevent the pestilence, which such a 
mass of putrefaction would occasion, constant fires were kept burn- 
ing in the valley in order to consume the whole. Having been the 
scene of much cruelty, the receptacle of much pollution and of per- 
petual worms, and lurid fires blazing by day and by night, it was 
one of the most appalling and terrifric objects with which a Jew was 
acquainted. By an easy metaphor, the Jews who could imagine no 
severer torment than that of fire, transferred that name to the infer- 
nal fire — the place of endless wrath. 

This word is used eleven times by our Saviour, and once by the 
apostle James. In what sense they used this word, we shall now 
attempt to settle by an examination of the particular passages where 
it occurs. 



1*8 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.6. 

Matt, v : 22. — "But whosoever Bhall say thou fool, shall be in dan- 
ger of hell fire ( Gehenna of fire)." The amount of this difficult 
passage is this. The Jews considered but one crime, viz: actual 
murder, a violation of the sixth commandment. But our Lord in- 
sists that the commandment, taken from its true extent, prohibited 
not only the overt act but the feelings and words which should lead 
to it. He specifies three forms of such violation: unjust anger; 
anger accompanied 'with an expression of contempt ; and anger ac- 
companied with wickedness* This was going to the root or princi- 
ple of things, and vindicating the commandments of the moral law, 
from the corrupt and partial interpretations of the Scribes. The 
different degrees of punishment here referred to, allude doubtless 
to the courts of justice among the Jews. Among them there was 
three degrees of condemnation ; the judgment, the council, and the 
fre of Hinnon. Jesus says likewise, there shall be grades of con- 
demnation for violating the sixth commandment. Not only murder 
shall be punished by God, but anger, and contemptuous, provoking 
language, shall be regarded by hirn as a violation of the law, and as 
endangering a man's salvation. As these offences were not actu- 
ally cognizable before the Jewish tribunals, Christ must mean that 
they shall be hereafter punished by God. We are not to understand 
the passage as a statement of the comparative guilt of the three 
sins, for all sin exposes to hell fire ; but how many degrees of evil 
there are short of actual murder which exposed a person to the 
awful curse of God, and the Gehenna of fire. That the destruction 
of Jerusalem, is the punishment here intended by hell fire, is impos- 
sible, for it was not an event generally suspected, when the sermon 
on the Mount was delivered, and of course such a meaning of the 
word could not then have been received by those who heard our 
Saviour's discourse. That Gehenna in this passage means anything 
else than hell, remains yet to be proved. 

Matt, v : 29, 30.—" And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, 
and cast it from thee : for it is profitable for thee that one of thy 
members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast 
into hell (Geftenna)." "And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it 



Lect. 6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 129 

off, and cast it from thee : for it is profitable for thee that one of thy 
members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast 
into hell ( Gehenna)" The word rendered offend in this and several 
other passages in the New Testament, does not mean to displease f 
but to cause to offend, to snare the sold, and allure it into sin. Nor 
was it our Lord's design that we should literally maim our bodies, 
but overcome the evil propensities of our natures and resist our 
wanton desires, and abandon the dearest objects, which cause us ta 
sin. It is better to deny ourselves the gratification of an evil pas* 
sion here, though dear to us as a right hand or a right eye, than to 
go down to hell forever. The tremendous consequences held out 
to induce such sacrafices, teaches us that a single lust, persisted in, 
will issue in eternal ruin. "Thy whole body be cast into hell" 
The body with all its unsubdued and vicious propensities will con- 
stitute no small part of the misery of hell. The sinner will be sent 
there as he is ; with all his evil desires, and wicked passions, with- 
out any possibility of gratification forever. This is all that is ne- 
cessary to constitute an eternal hell. But what evidence is there, 
that this passage refers to a literal punishment in the valley ofHi'n- 
non ? What connection would the cutting 1 off of an offending 
member have with being burnt in that valley ? What court had 
authority to inflict this punishment on a person who should not 
mortify his sinful propensities ? The Jews had no laws respecting 
such offences. There was no manner of danger from the literal 
burning. 

Matt, x : 28. — " And fear not them which kill the body, but are 
not able to kill the soul : but rather fear him which is able to de- 
stroy both soul and body in hell ( Gehenna)" — See also Luke xii : 5.. 
Does hell in these passages mean the literal valley of Hinnon? 
What more could be destroyed than the body by a literal burning 
in that valley ? Call the soul what you please,, still it must mean 
something which no human tribunal could destroy. If it be said 
that Gehenna does mean the valley of Hinnon ; ; the meaning of the 
passage before us would amount to nothing more than this, " fear 
pot him who can kill you in one way, but entertain the greatest 



130 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 6. 

dread of him who can kill you in another." Our Saviour had been 
exhorting his disciples to boldness and perseverance in proclaim- 
ing the gospel, which as a system addressed to the Jews, " was ad- 
rerse not only to their habitual opinions, but to those opinions upon 
which their hopes, their partialities, their consolation, was founded."* 
This would expose them to many labors, dangers and sufferings. 
And if the above definition of Gehenna, which I reject, be the true 
one, then our Saviour exhorted hi3 disciples to take the most direct 
method to incur the hatred of the Jews, and the highest pun- 
ishment they could inflict. Hi3 language, then,* amounts simply 
to this : Fear not the danger of Gehenna, and yet make it morally cer- 
tain that you shall suffer the punishment of Gehenna. Rush into the 
danger of Gehenna, and yet do ail you can to avoid it. Did our 
Lord ever utter such a medley of contradiction and falsehood ? 
These passages prove that man has a soul that may perish by being 
subjected to misery, and that the bodies of the wicked will be 
raised up to be punished forever. Gehenna, then, designates a place 
of punishment, infinitely more terrible than the valley of Hinnon. 

Matt, xviii: 9 — " And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out and 
cast it from thee ; it is better for thee to enter into life with one 
eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire (Gehenna 
of fire.)" Is it said that Gehenna in this passage does not mean hell, 
because Christ was addressing his disciples ? I admit that Christ 
was speaking to his disciples. And may it not be necessary even 
for those whom the Lord may know to be the heirs of salvation, in 
certain situations to be urged to self-denials by a consideration of 
the danger of hell, as a means of preserving them from it? The 
contrast between entering into life and going into Gehenna, proves 
that Gehenna means the opposite of heaven. It is better to enter 
into life maimed than having two eyes to go into hell. Is it said that 
to enter into life means only to come in possession of that spiritual 
life which believers have in this world ? I answer, the disciples 
were supposed to be already entered into this life, and they could 
«ot be properly exhorted to labor for the attainment of that which 

* Paley's Evidences. 






Lect.6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 131 

they already enjoyed. Consequently there was no entering into life 
reserved for them, but entering into heaven. And if so, then the 
everlasting fire and the Gehenna of lire is contrasted with heaven, 
and must be the opposite of it, or there would not be a contrast 
And what is the opposite ot heaven but everlasting punishment ? 
This passage then is a conclusive proof that the punishment of the 
wicked will be eternal. 

Matt, xxiii: 15— "Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypo- 
crites ! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and 
when he is made, ye make him two-fold more the child of hell 
(Gehenna) than yourselves." A proselyte was one that should come 
over from a foreign nation, religion or sect, to us. The Pharisees 
look every means to gain proselytes in order to swell their numbers, 
or to amass wealth by extorting their money. But when they had 
done this they took no pains to instruct them, or to restrain them, 
and consequently they were left to the full indulgence of their vices. 
To be a child of hell, was a Hebrew phrase, signifying to be deser^ 
ving of hell, to be awfully wicked. And the passage implies that 
the wicked and blasphemous proselytes, as they had renounced their 
former superstitions by which they had been measurably restrained, 
were now twice as bad, and as much deserving of hell as were the 
Jews themselves, whom he calls in a few verses preceding a gene- 
ration of vipers, exposed to the damnation of hell. If Gehenna 
means a literal burning, the proselytes must be deserving of being 
burnt alive twice, which would be impossible. 

Matt, xxiii: 33— r" Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can 
ye escape the damnation of hell (Gehenna) ?" This refers beyond 
all question to future punishment. So great was their wickedness 
and hypocricy, that if they persevered in this course it would be 
impossible to escape the damnation that should come upon the 
guilty in the world to come. This passage then must refer to 
spiritual punishment in a ^future state. It cannot refer to a literal 
burning in the valley of Hinnon, for the Scribes and Pharisees were 
the leading men of the Jewish nation, and had the supreme power 
in their own hands. And we cannot suppose that they would 



332 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. ft; 

apprehend any serious danger of having this literal punishment 
inflicted upon themselves, since it would be in their power to avoid 
it if they should please. Nor does the damnation of hell here refer 
to the destruction of Jerusalem ; for there is no place where Christ 
plainly uses the phrase in that sense. But is it asked, how can the 
word hell here mean future punishment, since our Lord adds, (verse 
36,) " Verily I say unto you, all these things shall come upon this 
generation." And can any one find it difficult to conceive how 
punishment in a future world should come upon the men of that 
generation, when he hears the Son of God calling them serpents and 
a generation of vipers, and accuses them of being guilty of the 
righteous blood that was shed upon the earth, from the blood of 
Abel unto the blood of Zecharias, whom they slew between the 
temple and the altar ? 

Mark ix; 43-47 — "And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off; it is 
better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to 
go into hell, (Gehenna,) into the fire that shall never be quenched; 
where their worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched. And if 
thy foot offend thee, cut it off; it Is better for thee to enter halt into 
life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, (Gehenna,) into the 
fire that never shall be quenched. Where their worm dieth not 
and the fire is not quenched. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck 
it out ; it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with 
one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire (Gehenna of 
fire/)" This passage is essentially the same as those in Matthew v 
29, 30 — and xviii : 8, 9, We therefore need offer no comments 
upon it. 

James iii : 6 — " And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity ; 
even so is the tongue among our members that it defileth the whole 
body, and setteth on fire the course of nature ; and is set on fire of 
hell (Gehenna.) 11 If hell here means the valley of Hinnon, I would 
inquire what this valley had to do in originating the mischiefs of 
the tongue ? Further, if the word means the destruction of Jerusa- 
lem in all other cases, why not here ? Surely if the word was 
generally appropriated to that idea, the readers of James must have 






Lect.6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 133 

understood him in that sense. But as it regards the sense or non- 
sense of the passage, you may as well say that the destruction of 
Jerusalem sets on fire the tongue of every slanderer, false teacher, 
ridiculer of sacred things, and corrupter of the morals of mankind, 
as that the valley of Hinnon does it. There is no instance of the 
use of the word that brings to my mind a more resistless demonstra- 
tion that it had become appropriated to express a world of woe. It 
is not here used, however, merely as a place of punishment, but 
as the source of an infernal influence. And as it is a place prepared 
for the devil, it is by a metonymy put for the devil himself, as by a 
similar rhetorical figure heaven is put for God. The apostle repre- 
sents the tongue as set on fire from hell rather than from the devil, 
because lie is speaking of fire and burning, whose origin he elegantly 
deduces from the flames of hell. 

Thus I have noticed the passages in which Gehenna is used in 
the New Testament. I shall now notice some objections to its 
being used in the sense of a place of future punishment, and offer 
some further objections to its being used in any other sense. It is 
objected that " the word Gehenna occurs but twelve times in the 
New Testament." But what if it had occurred but once only. The 
truth of a doctrine cannot depend upon the frequency with which 
it is repeated. One decisive declaration is sufficient. Further, the 
word valley of Hinnon does not occur so many times in the Old 
Testament as this does in the New ; and is that any proof that it is 
not there used in a literal sense ? 

It is also objected, that " the term is not used in the Old Testa- 
ment to designate the place of endless punishment to the wicked." 
And what then ? Is there nothing revealed or taken for granted in 
the New Testament that is not revealed or taken for granted in the 
Old ? Nor is this term used in the Old Testament as a name for 
the destruction of Jerusalem. 

It is further objected, that " this word Gehenna is used by our 
Lord and by James only." True — and is their testimony not suffi- 
cient ? A similar objection might be raised against the existence of 
God. You might go over a great part of the sacred writings on this 

L | 



m METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 6. 

subject, telling us that not only many of the Old Testament writers, 
but a large proportion of the New, make no mention of it. And 
when you have thus established your point, you may say, "is not 
this a proof that the scriptures do not teach the eternal existence of 
God?" Again it is objected, that " nearly all our Lord said about 
Gehenna he said to his disciples." And was not the principal part 
of his preaching addressed to his disciples, and through them to the 
world ? What was spoken to them in the ear, they were com- 
manded to proclaim upon the house tops. Other objections might 
be named, but they are so frivolous that I will let them have (he 
mortification of answering themselves. 

When our Lord spoke of the Gehenna and the Gehenna of fire he 
eould not allude to the destruction of Jerusalem, and mean to assert 
that those who were not converted to Christianity would be involved 
in that calamity. If that destruction were then universally expected , 
and was generally designated by the name Gehenna,the case would 
be different. But the predictions of it in the Old Testament do not 
seem to have been understood, Christ himself predicted it only in 
the hearing of a few, and never in plain and direct terms till near 
the close of his ministry, and after he had delivered his discourses 
in which this term is used. It is incredible then to suppose that his 
hearers would recognize that event in his brief allusions to Gehenna. 
Further, if Gehenna was the current name for the expected destruc- 
tion of Jerusalem, why did not our Lord and his apostles in their 
discourses on this subject, use the word at least in one instance, 
where it3 meaning would be confined to that destruction ? We 
should have expected that where the word is used so often, it would 
in one instance be definitely used to denote the coming ruin of 
Jerusalem. But nothing of this occurs in any passage where the 
destruction of Jerusalem is predicted by Christ and his apostles. 
Those then who would refer Gehenna and Gehenna of fire to the 
destruction of Jerusalem, do it not only without precept and example, 
but without any reason unless it be to evade the scriptures. 

If our Lord meant to assert that those who should not embrace 
the christian religion would be literally burnt in the valley of Hin- 



Lsct.6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 135 

non, he declared what never took place. And I am unwilling to 
accuse him of falsehood. I can find no evidence that the valley of 
Hinnon was used as a place of punishment in the time of Christ and 
his apostles. If it was so used, I would ask why Christ and hii 
apostles never spake of it as a place of punishment, or were never 
threatened with punishment in it? Of course if our Lord did not 
mean by Gehenna a place of literal punishment, he must have meant 
by it that part of hades in which the Jews supposed that demons and 
wicked men would be tormented forever. 

But if it be said that "Jesus used this word figuratively to repre- 
sent the torments which the soul must experience that should reject 
the truth, under the testimony of the word of God like fire ; and that 
as fire and brimstone are used to whiten and purify articles of 
clothing, so the word of God and the moving of his spirit whitens 
and purifies the soul" — how then could our Lord represent it as a 
fire that is not quenched? If the Gehenna of fire means the truth 
of God and the operation of his spirit, by which the soul is purified 
from sin, why are we exhorted to entertain the greatest dread of 
being cast into this flame ? Why are we exhorted to do all in our 
power to avoid it? If that be the true import of Gehenna, it is to 
be viewed as a world of mercy. No sinner need fear or dread be- 
ing cast into it. He should rejoice in being cast into it ; for hereby 
his soul will be purified from the effects and consequences of sin. 
I now leave to your decision the question whether Gehenna does 
not mean a place of punishment in the future world. 

To the same point I remark, fourth, that there is one more term 
once used in the New Testament, and translated hell, which I 
shall briefly notice, since it has been subjected to perversion equal- 
ly with those which we have already considered. I refer to Tarta- 
rosas. 

2 Peter ii : 4.—" For if God spared not the angels that sinned 
but cast them down to hell (Tartarosas), and delivered them into 
chains of darkness to be reserved unto judgment." The word Tar- 
tarus is not found in the Lxx., nor in any place of the New 
Testament but here. Its meaning must therefore be sought for 



136 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.6. 

among the Greeks, and determined according to the scope of the 
apostle's argument. Homer represents Tartarus as a deep place, 
under the earth. — (Iliad viii., line 13.) In like manner Hesiod 
speaks of Tartarus as a place far under ground, where the Titans 
are bound with chains in thick darkness. — (Theogon,line 119-718.) 
The Greeks had no definite idea of it, but according to their poets 
it was a deep, dark place — the lowest hell. It probably was deriv- 
ed from tarasso, to trouble, to disquiet, to Jill with consternation ; and 
its meaning is probably synonimous with the meaning of hades. 
In the case before us the context is so decisive as to the meaning: 
of the word, that if it had been left blank, we could not fill the 
blank with any thing short of what means a place of future punish- 
ment to the wicked. This is manifest, for the writer is speaking 
directly of punishment. In the verses preceding, speaking of false 
teachers, who privily introduce destructive errors, he says, " whose 
judgment now of a longtime," that is, whose punishment threaten- 
ed of old "lingereth not and whose damnation slumbereth not." 
And he then proceeds, — " For if God spared not the angels that 
sinned, but confining them in Tartarus with chains of darkness 
hath delivered them over to be kept for judgment ; and brought a 
flood in upon the ungodly, and overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah," 
he will not spare them. Since the Greeks named the place where 
they supposed the enemies of their gods would be confined after 
death, Tartarus, Peter when writing in the Greek language con- 
cerning the confining of the evil angels, calls the place of their 
confinement Tartarus, I will not now stop to notice the trifling ob- 
jection, that, the "angels that sinned," here, mean Korah and his 
company or any other company but the angels that sinned, whom 
Jude tells us left their own habitation and are reserved in everlast- 
ing chains under darkness, unto the judgment of the great day ; 
and whom our Saviour represents as having prepared for them ever- 
lasting fire. 

Thus I have noticed the principal passages in which the word 
hell is used to denote a place of future punishment ; and have we 
not found abundant evidence that the assertion is false, that this- 



Lect. 6.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY, 137 

word does in no case denote the place of future punishment ? I 
hope, my impenitent hearers, that you will ponder well the paths of 
your feet, and not be inclined for a moment to rest the future and 
eternal destiny of your soul upon a system that must be supported 
by such a wretched perversion of the plain declarations of Scrip- 
ture. And if there be a hell, as I humbly conceive I have proved, 
I feel constrained as I take my leave of this part of my subject, to 
say to those who pervert the Scriptures to prove the contrary, as 
Paul said to the sorcerer — " O full of all subtlety and all mischief 
thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not 
cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord V 



LECTURE VII. 

SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED. 

Acts xiii: 8-10. — "But Elymas, the sorcerer, (for so is his name by 
interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from 
the faith. Then Saul, (who is also called Paul,) filled with the Holy 
Ghost, set his eyes on him, and said, O full of all subtlety, and all 
mischief thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt 
thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord ?" 

Sergius Paulus, a proconsul of Cyprus a candid and intelligent 
man, called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear from them 
the import of their new doctrine. It is an evidence of his candor 
that he was willing to listen to the instructions of the professed 
ministers of God. But Elymas, the magician, being sensible that, 
if the influence of the truth should be extended over the mind of 
the deputy, he himself would be seen to bean impostor, and would 
have to give up his impositions, endeavored to prevent the salutary 
influence of the truth on his mind. Then Paul, inspired to detect 
sin, looked at him intently and said, " O full of all subtlety and 
mischief, -thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, 
wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord ?" The 
•mischief and subtlety of Elymas, consisted, probably, in slight of 
band, legerdemain, or tricks, aided by skill in the abstruse sciences. 
Practising deceit and iniquity, and being under the influence and 
promoting the designs of Satan, he is called his child, and an enemy 
to all righteousness. A man who lives in sin will hate the truth 
and will directly or indirectly oppose it. In what way he opposed 



Lect. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 139 

Paul and Barnabas, is not known. It is probable that he misrepre- 
sented their doctrine, and vilified their character ; and thus retarded 
the progress of the gospel. The expression " wilt thou not ceastV 
implies that he had been sedulously employed for a considerable 
time, in perverting the right ways of the Lord. " The right ways 
of the Lord" denote the strait paths or doctrines of the Christian 
religion, in opposition to the crooked and perverse arts of deceivers 
and impostors. 

What I propose in this Lecture is, to notice some other methods 
by which the objectors of endless punishment evade the force of 
Scripture testimony, and thus like Elymas, the sorcerer, pervert the 
right ways of the Lord. Having remarked in the preceding Lec- 
ture, that they evade the Scriptures by adopting false principles of 
interpretation ; I proceed to remark, 

II. That they evade the testimony of Scripture by asserting that, 

>;OT SINGERS, BUT THEIR SINS ARE TO EE DESTROYED IN THE FU- 
TURE world. By this method, all those passages are set aside 
which speak of the wicked as being burnt up, consumed, castaway, 
and destroyed. Some take the ground that such passages mean 
only that the vices and bad dispositions of the wicked will be de- 
stroyed at death, while they themselves will be admitted into the 
kingdom of heaven. But, there is nothing in death to destroy the 
existence of sin in the soul, neither is there any thing in it to 
change its nature. It is a part of the nature of sin to produce mis- 
ery, just as truly as it belongs to the sun to impart heat and light. 
But owin^ to the countervailing influences which grow out of our 
present condition, this tendency is not always apparent. But when 
the sinner is completely removed from them in the future world, 
what can prevent sin from having its legitimate operation in ren- 
dering him completely wretched ? To explain away the obvious 
meaning of the Bible, by asserting that not sinners but their sins 
are to be punished in a future state, is too palpably absurd to need 
refutation. What is sin, independent of a voluntary agent who 
commits it ? How can sin, as an abstract thing, be punished ? Sin 
is the voluntary act of transgressors, and, if reached at all, must be 



140 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7. 

reached by punishing the transgressors. And it will not be until 
I can be told how our courts of justice will be able to punish per- 
jury, theft, and murder, in the abstract ; while the persons guilty 
of these offences shall go free : that I shall believe that the sins of 
the wicked will be sent away into everlasting punishment, while 
they themselves will be, immediately after death, admitted into the 
kingdom of heaven. 

IIT. Another evasion is, that all punishment threatened to 

THE WICKED IS ENDURED IN THE PRESENT LIFE. By this expedient 

all those passages are explained away which denounce judgments 
against the wicked in a future state, as denoting the evils that are 
experienced in the present life. But can any rational being admit 
such, an opinion? Are the tfereatnings of Jehovah, the curse of the 
divine law, the solemnities of a future retribution, the perdition of 
ungodly mQn, and the wrath to come, to be so explained away as to 
mean only the calamities which men endure in this life ? I will 
now show by rational and scriptural arguments that sin is not pun- 
ished in this life to the extent of its deserts. If sin is punished in 
this life to the extent of its desert, it must be either in the outward 
trials and afflictions of the sinner, in pain and distress of body, or in 
anguish and remorse of conscience, or in all of these. 

That the wicked have a portion of the trials and afflictions of this 
life it will not be denied. But if the whole punishment of sin con- 
sists in these, we may expect to see an exact proportion, so far as 
we can judge, between the degrees of criminality and the trials and 
afflictions suffered. But is this proved by observation and scripture ? 
No — so far from it that many of the wicked have fewer trials and 
afflictions than many of the righteous. Says Job, " Wherefore do 
the wicked live, become old, yea and are mighty in power ?• Their 
seed is established in the earth and their offspring before their eyes. 
Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon 
them."* Jeremiah says, " Wherefore doth the way of the wicked 
prosper ? Wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacher- 
ously?"f The Psalmist is very explicit on this subject, and says, "I 
* Job xxi : 7-9. f Jer. xii : 1. 



Lect.7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 141 

was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 
For there are no bands in their death, but their strength is firm. 
They are not in trouble as other men, neither are they plagued like 
other men. Behold these are the ungodly who prosper in the world, 
they increase in riches. Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, 
and washed my hands in innocency. For all the day long have I 
been plagued, and chastened every morning. When I thought to 
know this it was too painful for me ; until I went into the sanctuary 
of God: then understood I their end. Surely thou didst set them 
in slippery places ; thou castedst them down into destruction as in 
a moment."* There was a time when Asaph was not clear in the 
doctrine of divine providence. But when he had entered the sanct- 
uary, and by reading the law learnt the character of the providence 
of God towards men in this life, he saw that the prosperity of the 
wicked was not to be envied, and that the righteous should not 
murmur under afflictions. The case of the rich man in the gospel 
will fully illustrate the subject of the above Psalm. He prospered 
in the world. He was clothed in purple and line linen and fared 
sumptuously every day. He was not in trouble like Lazarus. But 
how was he brought down to destruction ! He died, and in hell he 
lifted up his eyes beingjn torments. In his life-time he received his 
good things, while Lazarus received his evil things. B^t now 
Lazarus is comforted and he is tormented in a flame. 

These testimonies are abundantly sufficient to show what indeed 
our own observation teaches, that rewards and punishments are not 
awarded to men even in this life exactly according to the virtues 
and vices of mankind. But do the wicked receive their whole 
punishment in the pains and afflictions of body which they suffer in 
this life ? I admit that they may suffer great bodily afflictions. 
But do they suffer more in these respects than the righteous ? If it 
be said that some wicked people suffer more than some righteous, 
it would be nothing to the point, for some righteous people suffer 
more than some wicked. It must be made to appear that the 
wicked suffer as much more than the righteous as they are more- 
*Psalm lsxiii. 



143 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect, 7. 

guilty, and that they suffer in exact proportion to the demerit of 
their guilt ; or the position that the wicked have all their punish- 
ment in the pains and afflictions of body which they surfer here, 
must be given up. This has never been done. Nor can it be 
proved that the wicked have more pains and afflictions than the 
righteous. 

And that the wicked do not receive their full desert of punishment 
in the anguish and remorse of conscience which they suffer, may be 
clearly shown. I acknowledge that some wicked men suffer much 
from remorse of conscience. But this is the effect of their guilt. 
If men received their whole deserved punishment in remorse of 
conscience, we should expect to see the anguish and remorse of a 
person increase continually as he progresses in sin. But is not the 
reverse of this often found to be the fact ? The observation of 
every person who is acquainted with the drunkard and libertine, 
who has visited our State prisons and common jails, must convince 
him that the lashes of conscience are not increased, but diminished, 
by a descending progress in vice. The commission of one sin 
goes to destroy the principle of resistance, and thus prepares the 
way for the commission of another. And many by a continued 
progress in sin have their conscience seared so as to be past feeling. 

Thus I have examined every possible way in which the wicked 
may be supposed to suffer in this life, and the result of the whole 
is, that they do not here receive all the punishment which they 
deserve. Consequently a punishment awaits them in the world to 
come. 

If it were true, as* some pretend, that the wicked are punished 
only in the present life, then how absurd to talk of salvation. A 
criminal who has suffered the full penalty of the law, need not be 
told that his liberation is an act of mercy. He has a right to 
demand it as an act of justice. In like manner if men receive the 
due punishment of their sins in this life, they can claim exemption 
from future punishment on the ground of right. They have satisfied 
the utmost demands of the divine law. Now salvation is deliver- 
ance from the guilt, the condemnation, and the punishment of sin. 



Lect. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 143 

But this idea supposes that we are not delivered from these, but 
suffer them to their full extent. It would be ludicrous for a crimi- 
nal to say that he had been saved from state prison because he had 
actually suffered out his full term of confinement. Equally ridicu- 
lous is it to talk of salvation when the sinner suffers to the full 
extent of his guilt. There is not a particle of salvation about it. 

But there is another serious objection to the idea we are now 
opposing. It destroys the idea of forgiveness ; for this implies that 
the sinner forgiven is not punished according to law and justice. 
But some tell us that the idea of forgiveness is perfectly consonant 
with the idea of suffering the whole penalty of the law. And so 
we have been told that salvation and damnation in substance mean 
the same thing; but who believes it? Should a man tell us that 
black was white and white black, or that wrath was love and guilt 
innocence, who would believe these palpable contradictions ? But 
they might as well believe this, as to believe that the sinner is par- 
doned and still suffers the whole curse of the divine law. 

There is yet another serious objection to this sentiment. If all 
are discharged on the ground of justice, by enduring the whole 
penalty of the law, the system of grace revealed in the Bible falls 
to the ground. Grace is favor conferred on the guilty and undeser- 
ving. But those who have suffered the whole penalty of God's 
law, and have thus discharged all its claims, cannot say "by grace 
I am saved." Theirs therefore will not be the song of redeeming 
love. Here then is a system that destroys the idea of salvation, 
forgiveness and grace. Had the wicked attempted to devise a sys- 
tem directly opposite to the Bible, they could not have hit upon one 
more suited to their purpose than this. It is as we have seen, false 
in fact, and overturns the whole system of man's redemption as 
revealed in the Bible. 

IV. But though by far the greater part of the objectors under 
-consideration deny all future punishment, yet there are some few 
of the more sober and candid among them who hold that there is 
a future state of probation, and that future punishment js 

ONLY DISCIPLINARY AND LIMITED. By this evaFion all those tCXtS 



144 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.7. 

which threaten the wicked with everlasting destruction and punish- 
ment, are explained to mean the chastisements only of a father, 
inflicted on his disobedient children during a limited period, and for 
their best interest. 

But this doctrine in question is all mere assumption. I am not 
aware that there is a single text of scripture that even intimates 
that the future punishment of the wicked is designed for their 
good, or that their moral character will be changed after death. 
The last account the Bible gives us of them is, " that they died and 
were buried, and in hell lifted up their eyes being in torments." It 
sentences them to everlasting punishment ; leaves them in hell, and 
is entirely silent as to their being placed under a painful and lasting 
discipline after death that will correct their evil dispositions and 
vicious habits, and form in their minds the love of virtue, by which 
they will be prepared for heaven. 

This notion is contradicted by the analogy of experience. Would 
a parent, if he wished to reform his vicious child, place him in the 
society of those who were equally or even more abandoned than 
his child ? And is it not true in fact, that the wicked who in the 
present life have been doomed by the sentence of human law to 
confinement with those of a similar character to their own, have 
generally come away monuments not of the reforming, but of the 
corrupting and hardening influence of such kind of punishment? 
Where then is the ground for believing that the wieked by being 
continually associated with those in whom the principles of false- 
hood, deceit and malignity, and the passions of pride, hatred, malice, 
and revenge rage with uncontrolled and perpetual violence ; and 
who continually blaspheme God and oppose the interests of his 
kingdom ; will become conformed to* his image and acquire a relish 
for his service ? 

This doctrine is contrary to the express declarations of the Scrip- 
tures. The punishment of the wicked is declared to be everlasting 
in such a variety of instances and in such a variety of forms of ex- 
pression as to preclude the idea of its being limited, and of a puri- 
fying influence. They are said to endure "the wrath," "the ven- 



Lect. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 145 

geance," "the fiery indignation," "the fierceness of the wrath of 
Almighty God, v "judgment without mercy," and all the threatnings 
of the divine lav/ without any mixture of good. Does this lan- 
guage express sufferings, designed only for the reformation of those 
who endure them ? 

According to the opinion now under consideration, all endure the 
whole penalty of the law, and are strictly punished according to 
their deserts* Of course they are not saved by grace, nor is their 
deliverance in any sense to be ascribed to Christ. Grace 
and mercy have no portion in their restoration to the divine 
favor. When an offender has served out the term of his sentence 
in the penitentiary, would he think of petitioning the Governor 
to grant him his pardon? If a pardon were offered him just as he 
was leaving the prison-gates, would he receive it as a great favor? 
Need a person who has paid his debt, be told, that his debt was 
generously forgiven him ? Contemptible absurdity ! If the doe- 
trine of universal restoration be true, the sinner will enter heaven 
without being under any obligation to God for pardoning him, or 
the Lord Jesus for redeeming him, or the Holy Ghost for sanctify- 
ing him. Is not this utterly inconsistent with the whole tenor of 
Scriptures ? Does it not sink the grace of the gospel into a mere 
farce ? 

If the punishment of the wicked is only a necessary and salutary 
discipline, designed to promote their ultimate happiness, then pun- 
ishment inflicted for any other end is unjust. In this case he 
deserves no more punishment for breaking the law, than will repair 
the injury sustained by himself. It is therefore unjust to punish 
him for the injury and insult he may have done to the government 
of God, and the interests of the Universe, excepting so far as he 
at the same time injures himself. But this implies that they are not 
injured and insulted by the transgressor, and that therefore no rep- 
aration is to be made to them. 

Will any one assume this ground, that sin has not a serious bear- 
ing upon the interests of the Divine holiness, law, and government? 
If he will thus deny its influence, he may deny its existence, But 
M 



146 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7, 

if you acknowledge that the transgressor sin3 against God, and 
injures his government ; and that the justice of God, and the dignity 
of his authority, and the interests of the universe, require punish- 
ment to make a reparation, and that for this purpose God has sanc- 
tioned his law with a penalty, then you must give up the ground of 
disciplinary punishment as untenable. 

Again, if future punishment is disciplinary, it is inflicted without 
the least necessity, and is therefore a wanton exercise of cruelty ; 
for the repentance and reformation of the sinner might be effected 
without the imposition of dreadful torments for ages of ages. That 
same power and wisdom which lead many to repentance in this life, 
might by similar or superior means lead all to repentance. Or if a 
more clear exhibition of truth and stronger motives v/ere necessary, 
God might exhibit the truth in such a convincing manner, and might 
render motives so inducing as inevitably to produce conviction that 
should result in genuine repentance and conversion to God. Why 
are the fires of hell kindled at all ? Why are sinners doomed to 
unutterable woes for ages on ages when it is God's purpose to par- 
don and save them ? 

Once more, if the sufferings of the wicked are for their ultimate 
and everlasting good, they are not to be regarded in any proper 
sense as punishment. Punishment is the infliction of positive evil ; 
it is subjecting the guilty to sufferings which, all things considered, 
are an evil to them. If then the wicked suffer in the future life only 
for their good, they are not punished. A man who goes through a 
painful course of medicine, or submits to the amputation of a limb, 
in order to restore health or preserve life, is in no sense punished. 
If future punishment be disciplinary, the wicked while enduring the 
pains of hell will have occasion for thanksgiving for what they will 
endure ; for by this salutary discipline they are being prepared for 
the purity and happiness of heaven. But is hell a world of mercy ? 
Does God there cause all things to work together for good to those 
who hate and oppose him ? This is equally as absurd and ridiculous 
as to suppose that the wicked receive all their punishment in this 
life. 



Lbct.7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 147 

V. Some evade the force of scripture testimony by denying the 

IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL AND THAT IT IS CAPABLE OF SUFFER- 
ING OR ENJOYMENT IN AN INTERMEDIATE STATE. They acknowl- 
edge that the whole doctrine of future punishment whether limited 
or endless, depends upon this: "Is the soul immortal, and is it 
capable of suffering or enjoyment in an intermediate state ?" Hence 
they are reduced to the only alternative, either to admit the doctrine 
of future punishment, or to deny the immortality of the soul and its 
existence after death and before the resurrection. 

The immortality of the soul is a subject of infinite moment to 
man as a social, rational and accountable intelligence. If he have 
not an immortal soul, religion is a shadow, life a dream, and the 
approach of death a scene of darkness and despair. But if man is 
destined to an eternal existence, an immense importance must attach 
to all his present affections, actions and pursuits. All decisive and 
complete information on this point is of the greatest moment ; for all- 
error and uncertainty in a matter of such importance must enfeeble 
and unsettle the mind, and detract from the efficacy of those motives 
which excite and animate the soul to aspire after the felicities of 
another world. There is too much reason to believe that the indif- 
ference to religion which so generally prevails, and the unhallowed 
practices to which it gives rise, are owing principally to the want of 
a full conviction of the reality of a future state. 

Now that the soul is immortal might be argued from the Light of 
Nature. From the consideration of the universal belief which this 
doctrine has obtained among all nations and in all ages ; from the 
strong and restless desires after future existence and enjoyment 
implanted in the human breast ; from the strong desires of the mind 
after general knowledge, and the capacious intellectual faculties 
with which man is furnished ; from the susceptibility of the mind 
for endless progress towards intellectual and moral perfection, and 
the unlimited range of view which is opened to it throughout the 
immensity of space and duration ; from the painful apprehensions of 
the mind under the influence of remorse ; from the justice and 
providence of God, and from the absurdity of supposing that the 



148 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7, 

intelligent and thinking principle in man will ever be annihilate d, 
we might argue the immortality of the soul. But the only sure 
ground on which to rest the proof of this doctrine is the word of 
God. This clearly establishes the point by declaring not only thai 
the soul is capable of existing forever, but that it is the unalterable 
purpose of the Creator that it should thus exist. — (Matt, x: 28.) 

The ancient patriarchs, and other illustrious characters that 
flourished under the Jewish dispensation, lived and died in the full 
persuasion of the immortality of the soul ; and it was in the hope of 
another life that they received the promises. " As for me," says the 
Psalmist, "I shall behold thy face in righteousness ; I shall be satis- 
fied when I awake in thy likeness." "My flesh shall rest in hope ; 
for thou wilt not leave my soul among the dead. Thou wilt show 
me the path of life ; in thy presence is fullness of joy ; at thy right 
hand are pleasures forevermore." " God will redeem my soul from 
the grave, for he will receive me." "Whom have I in heaven but 
thee, and there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee. Thou 
wilt guide me with thy counsel and afterward receive me to glory.** 
Nothing can be more clear and express than such declarations. If 
the Psalmist did not believe in the immortality of the soul, and did 
not hope to enjoy the felicities of another world after the termina- 
tion of his earthly pilgrimage, his language is absolutely without 
meaning. What rational interpretation can be given of the express- 
ions of his being redeemed from the grave and put in possession of 
fullness of joy and everlasting pleasures, if his view was confined to 
the narrow limits of time. Job, that illustrious exampl s of patience, 
consoled his spirit under the most acute suffering by the hopes he 
entertained of a blessed immortality. "I know," says he, " that my 
redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the 
earth ; and after 1 shall awake though this body be destroyed yet ia 
my flesh shall I see God." In many other passages of the prophets 
the same truth is exhibited. When Balaam desired that his death 
might be like that of the righteous, it must be in the hope and 
expectation of a glorious immortality. Another decisive proof that 
the Israelites believed in the immortality of the soul is found m 



Lie*. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 149 

their persuasion that the souls of the dead sometimes appeared after 
their decease, as Samuel to Saul, (1 Sam. xxviii: 13-15,) and Jere- 
miah to Judas Maccabeus, (2 Mac. xv: 14.) When Christ walked 
upon the sea the apostles took him for an apparition, and after his 
resurrection he referred to this current belief. The Saduceeswho 
denied the immortality of the soul, were regarded by their nation as 
a kind of heretics. 

In the christian revelation the doctrine of immortality is taken for 
granted, and incidentally interwoven through all the discourses of 
our Saviour and his apostles as a truth which lies at the foundation 
of our religion, and never ought to be called in question. It is true 
they have not attempted to prove it by any labored arguments or 
supernatural evidences. It is assumed as true, as Moses in giving 
an account of the creation assumed as true the being of God. Paul 
when looking forward to the dissolution of his mortal frame, declares 
in his own behalf and in behalf of all christians, " Our light affliction, 
which is but for a moment, worketh out for us a far more exceeding 
and eternal weight of glory ; while we look not at the things which 
are seen, but at those which are not seen, for the things which are 
seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." 
The apostle Peter declares that believers " are regenerated to the 
lively hope of an incorruptible, undefiled, and unfading inheritance 
reserved for them in heaven." And our Saviour declares in refer- 
ence to his disciples, " I give unto them eternal life and they shall 
never perish" These passages clearly demonstrate the immortality 
of the soul. I shall now pass to notice in particular the evidence 
of its existence after death and before the resurrection. 

The language of Scripture constantly implies that the soul is 
capable of exerting its powers and faculties in a state of separation 
from fhe body. The apostle, during his vision, could not tell 
whether he was in the body or out of the body, and he speaks of being 
w absent fron the body and present with the Lord." Now if a man 
can be absent from the body and at the same time be present with 
the Lord, what more is wanted to prove the conscious existence of 
separate spirits ? We frequently read of " things done in the body/' 



150 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.7. 

which implies that some agent is capable of doing things out of the 
body. In Eccl. xii : 7, Solomon confutes the sentiments of those 
who suppose " that one event happeneth to man and to beast, that 
they both alike die/' by saying, " Then shall the dust return to the 
earth as it was, and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." 
Here it is directly asserted that after our mortal part shall return to 
its original dust, there is a spirit to return to God. In Matt, xyii, 
it is written, " And after six days Jesus took Peter and James and 
John into an high mountain and was transfigured before them ; and 
there appeared unto them Moses and Eiias talking with them." It 
is a question whether these persons were here in body or in spirit 
only. Whatever may be pretended of Elias or Elijah, that distin- 
guished prophet who is said to have been taken to heaven without 
dying, Moses surely died and was buried in the land of Moab. And 
his body could not be there. Is it said that this is a vision and 
ought not to be literally interpreted ? The word translated vision 
means sight, appearance, what they had seen on the mount. Hence 
to assume that the persons seen were not the real persons of Moses 
and Elijah, and the voice heard was not the real voice, is to take 
for granted what the word will not justify. Besides, Peter repre- 
sents these things as real— -(2 Peter i: 16-18} — " For we have not 
followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you 
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye witnesses of his 
majesty. For he received from God the Father, honor and glory 
when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This 
is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. And this voice 
which came from heaven we heard when we were with him in the 
holy mount." If these things were all real, does this not prove that 
the spirit of Moses had existence after his body was dead ? In Heb. 
xii: 23, we read of the " spirits of the just made perfect" as#vell as 
of " an innumerable company of angels." The answer of our Lord 
to those Saducees who caviled about the doctrine of the resurrection, 
is equally decisive against those who deny the doctrine of the tnfer- 
mediate state. His argument to prove the doctrine of a future 
existence was, that God said to Moses, "I am the God of thy father^ 



Lsct.7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 151 

the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." 
" And God is not the God of the dead but of the living-." If the 
holy patriarchs, whose names are here commemmorated with so 
much honor, were reduced to the mere clods of the valley, and their 
souls were struck into non-existence, God would never own the 
high relation to those whom he has finally abandoned and suffered 
to sink into a state of unconscious existence. Consequently Abra- 
ham, Isaac and Jacob, though dead in body, were living and 
intelligent beings in another state at that time. The phrase "He 
was gathered to his people" implies a similar sentiment. In Gen. 
xxv, it is said "Abraham rave up the ghost and was gathered to his 
people." This expression does not import that he was buried with 
his fathers, for the fathers of Abraham were buried several 
hundreds of miles from the qp.ye of Machpelah, in which the mortal 
remains of Abraham were reposited. The true meaning therefore 
must be that he was 'gathered' to the blessed society of those con- 
genial spirits who had passed into the unseen world. The translation 
of Enoch is proof in point. Paul says, " by faith Enoch was transla- 
ted that lie should not see death, and was not found because God 
had translated him. — (Keb. xi : 5.) Now to translate does not mean 
to annihilate, but to transfer to another state of being. He w T ent to 
dwell with God, for God took him. Now he passed into the invisi- 
ble world with or without a body. But to go into the world of spirits 
with a mortal body, is a contradiction of terms. His translation 
must be the assumption of a glorified body such as the saints will 
receive after the resurrection, and such as the righteous will assume 
who at the second coming of Christ are alive upon the earth. 

The scriptures likewise teach us that both the righteous and the 
wicked immediately on leaving the body enter into a state of happi- 
ness or misery. Lazarus as soon as he died was carried by angels 
into the bosom of A-braham; and when "the rich man died and was 
buried, in hell he lifted up his eyes being in torments." — (Luke xvi : 
19.) The conclusion is unavoidable that their spirits were in another 
world. Do you say that this is a parabolical representation ? What 
if it be — has it therefore no plain and intelligible meaning? And 



152 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.7. 

what truth does it inculcate if not that souls go into a state of 
happiness or misery at death ? I apprehend that in ninety-nine 
cases out of a hundred, every unbiassed person on hearing for the 
first time the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, would have a 
conviction on his mind that the immortal part of one was in a state 
of happiness, and that of the other in a state of misery. This is the 
obvious meaning of the parable. This was the sense in which our 
Lord must have been understood. And would he have uttered 
even in parables what had a direct tendency to mislead the reader, 
and to raise an expectation of a state which had no existence ? But 
he was pleased to confirm this inference by his address to the dying 
thief upon the cross : " This day shalt thou be with me in paradise." 
But this could not be unless his soul had existed in a state of hap- 
piness, while his body was buried witn the other malefactor. The 
apostle "had a desire to depart and be with Christ," which he con- 
sidered as far better than living on earth. But he would not have 
been any sooner with Christ for departing this life were he to be 
entirely under the power of death until the resurrection. Nor could 
lie be present witli the Lord while absent from the body, if at death he 
should sink into a state of unconscious existence and thus remain 
till the second coming of Christ. The Revelator was directed to 
write "Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord from henceforth 7 
even so saith the Spirit." This also implies that the righteous at 
death enter into a state of happiness. John "saw an innumerable 
company of souls before the throne of heaven, crying for vengeance 
on their persecutors, but were required to wait till the rest of their 
brethren had finished their testimony." — (Rev. vi : 9-11.) Interpret 
this passage as you will, still the facts it relates must precede the 
resurrection. Hence it proves a conscious existence of the soul 
after death. How absurd then is the conclusion that the soul is not 
immortal, and that it will not exist in a state of happiness or misery 
after death and before the resurrection! 

But suppose the soul is annihilated at death and reanimated at the 
resurrection, it is not essentially the same mind. It is a new crea- 
tion when rebuilt. But if the mind be in its essential properties ak 



Lect.7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 153 

the resurrection what it was when it left the world, then the sinner 
must have all those passions and affections which he has in this life, 
and he what he would be if he should not sink into a state of uncon- 
scious existence. This would not avoid the necessity of his. 
suffering in the eternal world ; for he must be what he was when he 
left the world, a guilty, wretched and polluted being. 

VI. Another evasion ivliich I shall notice is, the denial of the 

EXISTENCE AND AGENCY OF EVIL SPIRITS. Should W6 give Way to 

speculative notions of the existence and agency of evil spirits, we 
may presently lose ourselves. All that we can know of them is 
repealed in the Bible. To the Bible then let us repair. 

The objectors to endless punishment have labored hard to dis- 
prove the existence of a being called the devil. They argue that 
" the word devil or Satan in the Old and New Testament signifies 
only the principle of natural or moral evil, personified by the well 
known figure in rhetoric — The devil is only an allegorical person- 
age. ' The relative bearing of this subject upon the futsre punish- 
ment of the wicked would not sustain me in going fully into the 
proof of the reality and agency of evil spirits. Yet it may be proper 
for me to present a few thoughts on Satanic influence, and cite a 
few passages of scripture which to my own mind prove the existence 
and agency of evil spirits. 

Many eminent saints and christians of undoubted veracity and 
sanity, have frequently declared that the most horrid and blasphe- 
mous thoughts which can be imagined have been suddenly and 
unexpectedly suggested to their minds, to expel which they have 
exerted every energy of their moral powers. Now I ask, does not 
the fact that these thoughts were unwelcome, unsought for, and 
unexpectedly forced on their minds, prove that they wer£ the effect 
of some influence foreign to and independent of the mind ? And if 
so, was it the influence of a good or a bad being? 

The language of the scriptures on the existence and agency of 
evil spirits is such, that it is impossible to understand it in any other 
than a literal sense. The language of inspiration not only 
represents the devil as a real, intelligent agent, but describes hiru 



154 METHODS OP EVADING (Lect. 7. 

as having an influence on the human mind. To this point are the 
following passages of scripture : " The god of this world blindeth 
the minds of them that believe not." " The prince of the power 
of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedi- 
ence.'' " Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, 
as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour." 
" For this purpose the son of God was manifested, that he might 
destroy the works of the devil." " Resist the devil, and he will 
flee from you." " Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be 
able to stand against the wiles of the devil : for we wrestle not 
against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against 
the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wicked- 
ness in high places." " The devil taketh him up into a high moun- 
tain." "The devil having put it into Judas' heart to betray 
him," &c. 

These and many ether passages which might be cited, abundantly 
teach to my mind the fact that there is a being of vast and exten- 
sive intellect; who is an enemy of all righteousness, and who with 
u his angels," has free access to the minds of men, tempting them 
to rebel against God and to destroy themselves, and that this being 
is the Devil. 

That Satanic influence is possible, no man ought to dispute, 'un- 
less he can prove it impossible. And can it be proved that Satan 
cannot communicate ideas to the human mind ? That simple spirit 
can influence spirits dwelling in bodies, cannot be denied without 
denying the influence of the Holy Spirit on the minds of men. I 
presume that no man will undertake to prove the impossibility of 
♦Satanic influence on the human mind. 

But is it said that we may account for the influence mentioned in 
the passages above quoted, without imputing it to infernal agency ? 
But God has told us that Satan has an influence on the human mind, 
and that'ought to put the subject to rest. We are not at liberty to 
explain away the literal meaning of the scriptures, and understand 
them in a metaphorical sense, unless the subject or connection show 
that they are metaphorical. If the scriptures on this subject are to 



Lect. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 155 

"be understood in a metaphorical sense, the influence of Satan mean- 
ing no more than moral evil, then the inspired writers, instead of 
using great plainness of speech, must have so written as to deceive 
mankind. Take for illustration a few passages. " When any one 
heareth the word and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked 
one and catcheth away that which was sown in the heart: this is he 
which received seed by the way-side." Christ is here explaining 
the parable of the sowers, and giving the plain and literal meaning. 
And can we suppose that he w r ould explain one dark metaphor by 
another equally dark ? The wicked one taking the word out of the 
heart, must have been quite as obscure as the fowls of heaven de- 
vouring it. 

The same might be observed of the parable of the tares. It is 
said that "while men slept the enemy came and sowed tares among 
the wheat and went his way." In giving the plain and real mean- 
ing of this parable, our Lord said that the enemy that sowed them 
was the devil. But if Satan has no influence on the mind, this 
instead of explaining was only perplexing the subject. 

In fine, it is easy to see that the existence and agency of evil 
spirits must stand or fall together. If the one is metaphorical, so is 
the other. If the one be given up, so may the other. And thus the 
scripture account " of the angels who kept not their first estate 
being reserved to everlasting chains, under darkness, unto the 
judgment of the great day," may be all a mere farce. And if there 
is in reality no such beings, the whole testimony of scripture is 
reduced to uncertainty. We may believe nothing which God has 
revealed if we can find a more simple way of accounting for facts 
which he has told us to be the effects of specific causes, than by 
acknowledging such causes to produce such effects. 

God has represented in his word a real, malignant being, who fell 
from heaven with all his company, and who has come with all his 
legions to this apostate world for the purpose of instigating man to 
persist in his rebellion against his Creator, and to resist all overtures 
of peace. God has also represented him as the grand mover of 
idolatry, snperstition, wars and persecutions, and as ruling in the 



156 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7. 

children of disobedience and leading them, captive at his will. He 
is a lying spirit in the mouth of false prophets, seducers and heretics. 
It is he that torments and possesses men. He inspires them with 
evil designs, as he did David when he drew him into sin by tempting 
him to number Israel ; Judas to betray his Lord ; and Ananias and 
Sapphira to conceal the price of their field. Places pre-eminent for 
wickedness are styled "Satan's seat." He roves full of rage like a 
roaring lion, to tempt, to betray, and to involve us in guilt and ruin. 

When we consider the plain testimony of scripture on the exist- 
ence and agency of evil spirits on the human mind, have we not 
abundant evidence of their existence and agency ; and that those 
who deny this fact and endeavor to explain the scriptures so as to 
justify such a denial, are perverting the scriptures ? If the power 
of Satan be an Eastern metaphor, so may the power Gf God be in 
delivering men from it. There is no doctrine in the Bible but that 
might be thus explained entirely away. Let us believe what God 
has said, and conform our faith to the decision of the sacred 
scriptures. 

VII. Another evasion tvhich I shall notice, is, that the judg- 
ment DAY IS PASSED AWAY ALREADY, OR THAT EVERY MAN IS 
JUDGED AND REWARDED IN THE PRESENT LIFE. By this expedient 

all those passages are explained away which speak of a judgment 
to come, of every man standing before the judgment-seat of Christ; 
and of Christ as coming in the clouds of heaven with power and 
with great glory to judge the world. Since a few texts are found, 
in which the coming of Christ is spoken of with reference to some 
special manifestation of his power and glory in the present world, 
the position is assumed as demonstrably true, that wherever his 
coming is spoken of in the scriptures, it must have the same limita- 
tion, and relate only to the scenes of this life. It is asserted that 
all the judgment there is for the transgressor is in the present life, 
because if it be admitted that there is a judgment in a future state 
it will follow of course that there will be also punishment in a fu- 
ture state. Of this, the objectors of future punishment are aware ; 
hence their attempts to disprove the doctrine of the general judg- 



Lect. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 157 

inentat the end of the world. But were the Bible silent upon this 
point, it might be conclusively proved from facts and considerations 
independent of direct scripture testimony, that there is to be a judg- 
ment after death. 

That there will be a future judgment, may be inferred from the 
partial displays of divine justice in this world. If there be a righte- 
ous God, he will fully reward the righteous and punish the wicked. 
But this is not done in the present dispensation of things. Whether 
rewards and punishments are invariably awarded to men in the 
present life according to their moral actions, is a point that has been 
long settled. The experience of all ages has shown that pleasure 
and pain, prosperity and adversity, are not distributed by providence 
exactly according to the virtues and vices of mankind, but scattered 
with a promiscuous hand. Though various instances occur in which 
those who have distinguished themselves by their crimes are dis- 
tinguished by the judgments of Go*?, while those who have been 
eminent for piety and virtue were signally delivered by the inter- 
position of divine providence, yet the objects of God's hatred and 
iove are not uniformly distinguished by the present distribution of 
things. The wicked are often in prosperity all their days, while the 
righteous are in adversity. As it respects public calamities, the 
distress is general and indiscriminate. If drought, famine, pesti- 
lence, floods or fires are commissioned to spread wide disasters, 
they have no warrant except in a few miraculous instances to exempt 
the righteous. Hence the tie that binds human society must be 
severed before there can be a perfect retribution ; for the state of 
individuals is inseparably connected with that of society, and good 
and bad men must share alike in public blessings and calamities. 

We also infer a future judgment from the fact that although this 
is not a state of perfect retribution, yet God in his providence does 
here begin to reward virtue and punish vice. Had no distinction 
whatever taken place in the present life between the righteous and 
the wicked, there might have been some ground to conclude that 
the ancient complaint was just, "that all things come alike to all 
men ; there is one event to the righteous and the wicked." 

N 



158 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7. 

But to suppose that God regards with equal eye the evil and the 
good, is in effect to annihilate his existence, as it contradicts every 
notion which holy beings have entertained of him. It would repre- 
sent him as having less regard for virtue than many of his creatures 
on earth ; for but few of them are so depraved as not to wish the 
virtuous rewarded and the vicious punished. Now God is a being 
of order, and he has displayed it in his moral government. He ha3 
shown himself favorable to virtue and unfavorable to vice. He does 
begin to reward and punish in the present life. Thus we see the 
throne of the Almighty already set for judgment ; and by his begin- 
ning to reward and punish here, we infer what he will do hereafter, 
when the characters of moral agents will be fully adjusted. 

Conscience also intimates to man when he sins that he deserves 
to be punished. Now the reproaches of conscience are altogether 
inexplicable, if there be no retribution beyond the grave. We are 
therefore led to the conclusion that those terrors which assail the 
wicked may be considered the beginnings of that misery and anguish 
which will be consummated in the world to come, in the cases of 
those who add final impenitence to all their other crimes. 

When we see or hear of great crimes committed by others, such 
as murders, perjuries, robbery, treachery, oppression in all its 
forms, and tyranny in all its degrees from that practiced towards 
the African slave, up to that exercised over the lives and liberties 
of millions of cringing vassals, through the forbearance of God, or 
the imperfection of human laws ; we feel something within us de- 
manding that such should receive condign punishment. From these 
considerations it seems reasonable to expect that there will be a 
judgment after death. 

But it is not on an argument of this kind that I principally rely 
for proof of a future judgment. We are not left to the mere dic- 
tates of reason on this subject. God, in his word, has revealed in 
the clearest manner, that there will be a day of reckoning at the 
end of the word. " I said in my heart, God shall judge the righteous 
and the wicked." " For God shall bring every work into judgment 
with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil. n 



Lsct. 7. SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 159 

(Ecc. liii : 17. — xii : 14.) " God hath appointed a day, in the which 
he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath 
ordained."— (Acts xvii: 30, 31.) " We shall all stand before the 
Judgment seat of Christ." — [Rom. xiv: 10.) "For we must all ap- 
pear before the judgment seat of Christ, that everyone may receive 
of the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, 
whether it be good or bad." — (2 Cor. v : 10.) Here it may be ob- 
served that the retrospective phrase, the things done in his body, 
determine the time of the judgment to a period beyond this life. 
" But I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, 
they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." — (Matt. 
xii : 36.) " And as Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance, 
and judgment to come, Felix trembled," — (Acts xxiv: 25.) "When 
the Son of Man shall come in his glory and all his angels with him, 
then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory and before him shall 
be gathered all nations : and he shall separate them one from an- 
other, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats ; and he 
shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. And 
these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but th© righteous 
into life eternal." — (Matt, xxv : 31-46.) These passages so clearly 
refer to the general judgment at a future indefinite time, that noth- 
ing need be said to establish this application of them. Another 
class of texts clearly limits the judgment to a period subsequent to 
death and the resurrection. " It is appointed unto men once to die, 
but after this the judgment." — (Heb. ix : 27.) " I charge, there- 
fore, before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the 
quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom." — (2 Tim. 
iv : 1.) " Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the 
quick and the dead." — (1 Pet. iv: 5.) By the quick we are to un- 
derstand those who shall be alive on the earth when Christ comes 
to judgment; and by the dead those who are so in a literal sens*. 
The dead will be raised, and those who are alive upon the earth at 
that time, will be changed, and both together will be judged. " But 
the heavens and the earth which are now, by the same, word are 
kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and 



160 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7. 

the perdition of the ungodly men." — (2 Pet. iii : 7.) " For I am 
ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand ; I 
have fought the good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept 
the faith ; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteous- 
ness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that 
day ; and not to me only, but to all them that love his appearing.'* 
(2 Tim. iv: 6-8.) "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand 
before God, and the books were opened; and another book was 
opened, which is the book of life ; and the dead were judged out 
of the things which were written in the books according to their 
works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death 
and hell delivered up the dead which were in them : and they were 
judged every man according to their works. And death and hell 
were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, And 
whoever was not found written in the book of life, was cast into 
the lake of fire." — (Rev. xx: 12-15.) Death and hell, taken liter- 
ally, are things which belong to time. Prior to the day of Judg- 
ment, the ungodly were confined under their power as in a prison, 
but having received their doom, they shall not be remanded back 
thither, but go into everlasting punishment. St. Peter speaks of 
the angels who sinned and were cast down to Tartarus, and deliv- 
ered in chains of darkness to be reserved unto judgment. — (2 Pet. 
ii : 4.) St. Jude, speaking of the same characters, is more explicit. 
" And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own 
habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains, under darkness,, 
unto the judgment of the great day." — (Jude 6.) Though the sub- 
jects of the judgment in these two last passages, are fallen angels, 
and not sinners of mankind ; yet the argument from their case, in 
support of the future judgment, is equally strong as though spoken 
of men : for it is not the subjects but the certainty of future judg- 
ment that is the object of inquiry. 

There is another class of texts which speaks of the judgment 
and its attending circumstances. " The Lord Jesus shall be reveal- 
ed from heaven, with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking ven- 
geance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel 



Lect. 7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 161 

of our Lord Jesus Christ. 5 ' — (2 Thess. i : 7, 8.) " Behold he cometh 
with clouds ; and every eye shall see him, and they also "which 
pierced him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. 
Even so, amen." — (Rev. i : 7.) The inspired writers speak of the 
visible heavens and earth as waxing old, and passing away ; yea, of 
a general conflagration as connected with the judgment. 

These are but a small portion of the passages which announce a 
judgment to come. But they are plain and decisive. They dis- 
close a judgment to occur after death, and to embrace all mankind. 

Now, let me ask, have scenes on earth ever been witnessed that 
correspond with the awful descriptions which the Bible gives of the 
final judgment? Has the Lord Jesus descended from heaven, in 
the clouds of heaven, visible to every eye, and penetrating every 
soul ? Have all men, all nations, the dead both small and great, 
the quick and the dead, stood before God ? Has the Judge of all 
separated them the one from the other, as a shepherd divideth his 
sheep from the goats, sitting his sheep on his right hand, and the 
goats on the left ? Has he pronounced sentence upon them accord- 
ing to their characters, saying to those on his right hand, Come, ye 
blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for yon from 
the foundation of the world, and to those on his left, Depart, ye 
cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels ? 
Has the sentence been actually executed? Have the righteous 
entered into life eternal, and the wicked gone away into everlast- 
ing punishment ? Are the wicked now experiencing everlasting 
destruction from the presence of the Lord and the glory of his 
power, and the righteous shining forth in the kingdom of their God ? 
These are scenes which mark the second coming of Christ, and the 
last judgment ; when he will come to judge the world in right- 
eousness. 

I am not unaware that it is objected that all that is said in the 25th 
chapter of St. Matthew respecting the final judgment, is referred to 
the destruction of Jerusalem. But any one who knows the manner 
in which the objectors treat this and the preceding chapter, can 
have no doubt that their present interpretation of them is only a 



162 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect.7. 

subterfuge to avoid the solemn truths which there bear down upon 
a guilty conscience. But what was there, let me ask, in the destruc- 
tion of Jerusalem that corresponds with the scenes described in the 
25th chapter of Matthew ? Did the son of man then come in his 
power and great glory, and all the holy angels with him ? Did he 
then sit upon the throne of his glory and gather before him all na- 
tions ? Did he separate them one from another ? Did he go into a 
formal and strict examination of their respective characters ? Did 
he judge them out of the books, and award the righteous everlasting 
life, and send the wicked away into everlasting punishment ? The 
man who can interpret all this as referring to the destruction of 
Jerusalem by the Roman army, is not to be reasoned with. To 
convince him is a hopeless task ; for if he does not believe God he 
will not be persuaded by man. 

If we compare the 31st verse of this chapter with the 30th and 
31st verses of the preceding, we shall see that Christ teaches us to 
conceive of his coming to the destruction of Jerusalem as emblem- 
atical of his second coming to judgment. That he here does refer 
to the last judgment is evident from the fact that it was in answer 
to an express inquiry respecting the end of the world. All nations 
were assembled, which was not done at the destruction of Jerusa- 
lem, and the rewards and punishments are declared to be eternal. 
Once more : 

VIII. It is objected thai in case should the scheme of universal 
salvation fail, the final punishment threatened in the Bible to the 
wicked consists not in an eternal preservation in misery, 
but in a total extinction of conscious being. Many pas- 
sages are conceived not only strongly to favor but expressly to 
assert this opinion. It is true that it is countenanced by the sound 
of several expressions which occur in the New Testament. But a 
careful examination of these passages will show that their meaning 
is far different from that, which a less thorough investigation would 
seem to indicate. A candid and full examination of the scriptures 
will convince any mind that they afford no evidence of such a 
hypothesis. 



Lect.7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 163 

The advocates of this doctrine contend that those passages which 
affirm that the wicked shall be destroyed, or perish, or be consumed, 
or suffer death, decidedly prove that they will be punished with the 
utter extinction of conscious being. Let us briefly notice a few of 
those passages in which such expressions are found. 

Apolluini, the word commonly rendered to destroy or perish, is 
found in about ninety instances in the New Testament. It is used 
in several different senses, but never in the sense of a total extinction 
of conscious being. It often means to render miserable. Schleusner 
renders it " miseram reddo, poenis officio, molestam ac indignationem 
creo alicui." (Matt, x : 28— Rom. ii : 12— xiv : 15—2 Cor. ii : 15— 
1 Cor. xv : 18 — Luke xiii : 3—5.) Jlpoleia, generally translated death 
or destruction, occurs about twenty times in the New Testament. 
It sometimes signifies temporal, death ; at other times calamity of 
any kind. Schleusner renders it misery or calamity, and observes 
that it is used to denote the divine punishment of offences both in 
this and in a future life. (2 Pet. ii : 1 — iii : 16 — Phil, iii : 19 — Rom. 
ix: 22 — Matt. vii:13.) Oleihros, rendered death and destruction, is 
no where used to denote the extinction of the thinking principle.- 
It literally signifies the destruction of the animal life, which is called 
death; and by a transfer of language it is used figuratively for divine 
punishment. after death. It generally signifies pain, misery, punish- 
ment— (1 Thess. v : 3—2 Thess. i :9.) 

On the word Thanalos, death, and the phrase Thanalos deuteros> 
the second death, the advocates of the doctrine of annihilation lay 
the greatest stress. They contend that the strict and invariable 
meaning of death is the total extinction of conscious being, and that 
the doctrine of the resurrection affords the only satisfactory evi- 
dence that this extinction of being will not be endless ; and that 
since the wicked are threatened with a second death from which 
there i's no promise of deliverance, we must conclude that their 
punishment will be endless and irrecoverable destruction. Now a 
little attention to this subject will show that the principle on which 
this argument is based is fallacious. Tlianalos does not denote 
the extinction of conscious existence. It literally signifies the 



164 METHODS OF EVADING (Lect. 7. 

destruction of animal life. And the place of the dead is made the 
place of punishment, so death is made the name of punishment 
itself. When this word relates to the wicked it denotes punish- 
ment after death. — (Rom. vi : 23 — viii: .31 — Jam. i: 15.) And the 
second death does not denote the destruction of all being, hut of 
ivell being. It is expressly said to consist in being " cast into a lake 
of fire and brimstone, and as having part in that la.ke." — (Rev. ii: 11 
— -xx: 14-15.) This does not describe annihilation, nor can it be 
made to consist in it. The lake of fire and brimstone is called the 
second death to intimate, that as the soul or thinking principle in 
man is not destroyed in the first death or destruction of the body, 
so neither is it to be extinguished at the general conflagration at 
the end of the world. And seeing the wicked shall never be deliv- 
ered from this second death by the resurrection, it is properly 
termed " everlasting destruction from the presence cf the Lord and 
the glory of his power." This everlasting destruction cannot mean 
annihilation ; for that would not be an exertion but a suspension of 
divine power ; for if this power be withheld for a moment the whole 
creation would sink into nothing. 

The punishment of wicked men will be the same as that of wick- 
ed angels; but their punishment consists not in annihilation, but in 
torment. "Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the 
devil and his angels." — (Matt, xxv: 41.) The present punishment 
of these fallen beings is torment. They are "cast down to help' — 
they "believe and tremble" — they cried saying, " what have we to 
do with thee? art thou come to torment us before the time?" 
Could they persuade themselves that they would be annihilated, 
would they not rathar believe and rejoice than tremble ? 

The different degrees of punishment which is threatened in the 
Bible to the wicked, proves that it does not consist in annihilation, 
for that admits of no degree. 

The happiness of the righteous does not consist in eternal being, 
but in eternal well being. And as the punishment of the wicked is 
every where contrasted with the future well being of the righteous.. 



Lbct.7.) SCRIPTURE TESTIMONY. 165 

it must consist not in a loss of conscious existence but of well being, 
which is equivalent to endless punishment. 

If it be said that punishment will consist in torment proportioned 
in every case to the degrees of guilt, and will end in total extinction 
of life and intelligence, it may be replied that this is making it to 
be a compound partly of torment and partly of annihilation* And 
is it credible that this was the termination of punishment that our 
Lord held up to his disciples as an object of dread? Can this be 
the destruction of the soul and body in hell ? Is it credible that 
our Lord should threaten the wicked with putting an end to their 
miseries ? 

It is highly unreasonable, if not absurd, to suppose that the think- 
ing principle in man will ever be annihilated. To sink into eternal 
oblivion is. impossible ! Reason tells us that we cannot die. So 
far as our knowledge extends, there does not appear a single in- 
stance of annihilation throughout the material system. Changes 
are indeed incessantly taking place, in countless variety, through- 
out every department of nature. The spots of the Sun, the belts 
of Jupiter, the surface of the Moon, and the rings of Saturn, and 
several portions of the starry heavens, are constantly varying their 
aspects. But no instance has yet occurred of any portion of matter 
in these worlds and systems of worlds being reduced to annihilation. 
The matter of which this earth is composed, abhors nothingness. 
Do not the most common objects in nature bid defiance to the hand 
of the destroyer. Mountains are crumbling down ; islands are 
emerging from the bottom of the sea, and sinking again into the 
abyss. Earthquakes and volcanoes have produced frequent devas- 
tations. The invisible atmosphere is also the scene of constant 
changes, by the mixture and decomposition of gasses. The vege- 
table and animal kingdoms are either progressively advancing to 
maturity or falling into decay. Still, however, amid all these 
changes and transformations no example of annihilation has yet 
occurred to the eye of the most penetrating observer. A piece of 
coal undergoes the process of combustion, and its component parts 
are dissolved, but the elementary particles of which it was com- 



m METHODS OF EVADING, &c. (Lect. 7. 

posed still remain in existence. Since, then, it appears that anni- 
hilation forms no part of the plan of the Creator in the material 
world, will he annihilate the world of mind? Reason says, no. 
The soul contains no principle of dissolution within itself, since it 
m a spiritual and uncompounded substance. And what is testified 
by reason is confirmed by Scripture. This informs us that all the 
repositories of the dead shall consign their charge to the dominion 
of immortality. Even in the absence of the body the soul lives and 
feels and acts, as we have seen, and our Lord tells us of those who 
eannot kill the soul. Hence wo must believe that the soul is death- 
less, and that the spark of life and intelligence which the Almighty 
has created in man, will never be extinguised. For you, fellow 
sinner, there will be no escape through the dark retreat of anni- 
hilation. You may in the moments of your desparation seek for 
this dark and dismal door into nonentity. But you will find it barred 
firm with adamant, and locked with eternal bolts. Look at this 
awful fact, and think of that despair that will seize those guilty 
souls, who will look in vain for this dark door by which they may 
©lude the grasp and be concealed from the withering glance of the 
Almighty Avenger! Fellow sinners, you may now evade the force 
of Scripture testimony, but you will not always be able so to do. 
O then let it be your concern to know what the Scriptures do teach, 
and submit yourselves to the decisions of the Oracles of God. 
"Search the Scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life, 
and they are they that testify of me." 



MECTUKE ¥111. 

TRUE PRINCIPLES OF INTERPRETATION, IN REFER- 
ENCE TO THOSE PASSAGES OF SCRIPTURE WHICH ARE SUPPOSED 
TO ASSERT OR IMPLY THAT ALL MANKIND WILL ULTIMATELY 
BE RESTORED TO PURITY AND HAPPINESS. 

2 Pet. iii : 16. — "As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these 
things ; in which are some things hard to he understood, which they 
that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the othzr 
scriptures, unto their own destruction" 

In the latter part of the apostolic age, many false teachers arose 9 
among whom the Nichclaitans and the Simonians were the^most 
remarkable. They perverted the doctrines of the gospel respecting 
justification by faith ; so as to make them a pretence for gratifying 
the vilest propensities of human nature without restraint. And to 
gain credit to their impious explications of the doctrines of the 
gospel, these impostors denied the divine authority of Christ and 
his apostles, and arrogated to themselves an illumination superior 
to that of the apostles of Christ. They assured their disciples that 
they were at liberty to gratify all their passions and appetites, and 
that Christ would not punish them for these nor any other sins. 

These doctrines were extremely agreeable to the corruptions of 
the natural heart. By embracing these, the wicked could keep up 
the appearance of being believers in the Christian religion, while 
they denied all that was offensive in its doctrines, and threw off all 
that was uncomfortable in its restraints. To stop the mouths of 
these false teachers, and to guard his brethren against the evil ten- 
dency of their doctrines, and to establish them in the belief of 



168 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect.8. 

those things which the Lord himself had taught and which his 
apostles had delivered in his name, Peter wrote this second epistle. 

The scriptures are our only rule of faith and practice. In them 
are clearly exhibited all those truths which are necessary for us to 
know in order to duty and salvation. But among the subjects con- 
tained in the Bible, some are not easy to be understood. This 
obscurity does not arise from any inaccuracy of expression, but 
from the grandeur and sublimity of the subjects produced. This is 
an evidence of the divine inspiration of the scriptures ; for had they 
been originated by man they might have been easily apprehended ; 
but that which emanates from God must of necessity be beyond 
the comprehension of mortals, unless it were possible for finite 
minds to grasp infinity. Such being the character of those subjects 
produced in the volume of Inspiration, we are required to bow our 
reason to its authority and to suspend our judgment, and wait for 
further light where a passage is not obvious, rather than commit 
ourselves to a decision that may prove to be unsound. The Bible 
is a depth which we shall never fathom in all its parts. It involves 
a thousand mysteries beyond the short-sighted view of mortals. 
Yet in its most important features, the truths it contains are clear 
and obvious. They lie upon its surface, occur again and again, 
and are stated in every variety of form. They are declared in such 
terms, and presented with such illustrations, that the vast bulk of 
mankind may comprehend them as well as the learned few. It is 
not strength of intellect, but a right temper of mind, that is wanting 
in order to a true understanding of the Bible. 

But owing to a depraved heart, nourished by a wicked life, the 
unlearned, the unteachable who are averse to the truth, and the 
unstable who have no fixed religious principles and no firm attach- 
ment to virtue, wrest the scriptures. By far-fetched criticisms and 
false interpretations, they distort, pervert and put to the torture, the 
plain and obvious as well as the more difficult passages of revelation, 
to make them speak a meaning different from what the Holy Ghost 
intended. There is no one instance in which the character of false 
teachers is more manifest than in their perversion of the plain and 



Lect. 8.) OP INTERPRETATION. 169 

obvious meaning of the Bible. They form a theory of their own 
which has a tendency to diminish their fear of the divine displeasure, 
and remove their painful apprehensions of future punishment, and 
which supports their hope of future happiness apart from present 
holiness ; and then they pervert the sacred truth in such a manner 
as to support their belief. The reason of this is obvious. While 
they are crying peace, peace, and while their hope of future bliss is 
based on the presumption that there is no wrath to come, no undying 
worm, no unquenchable fire, no hell ; the Bible with a voice of seven 
fold vengeance proclaims, "that it shall be ill with the wicked, for 
the reward of his hands shall be given him." Hence, like Haman, 
they find that all their fancied hopes avail them nothing, while the 
Bible, with its pointed precepts and awful sanctions, like Mordecai 
at the king's gate, is disturbing their peace and blasting their hopes. 
Hence they torture the scriptures so as to speak a sentiment that 
shall accord with the prevailing inclinations of their hearts. But in 
doing this they will effect their own ruin. They wrest the scriptures 
to their own destruction. As they do not embrace the love of the 
truth that they might be saved, God will permit the effectual work- 
ing of error in their minds to lead them even to believe a lie, that 
they may be damned who have not believed the truth, but have 
taken pleasure in iniquity. 

What I propose, on the present occasion, is to 'go into an exam- 
ination of some of those leading passages of scripture on which 
the objectors to future punishment rely for support. In doing this, 
I presume, we shall find a practical illustration of the truth of our 
assertion, that they wrest the scriptures. 

Time will not allow me to go into a minute examination of every 
individual passage, which is supposed to imply or assert the final 
salvation of all men. I choose rather to classify them, and by giv- 
ing in as few words as possible the real meanirg of these classes, 
to enable you to determine what is the true meaning of partic- 
ular passages. 

Much reliance is placed on that class of texts in which Christ is 
said to have "tasted death for every man>" (Heb. ii : 9) — to have 
o 



170 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8, 

" given himself a ransom for all," (1 Tim. ii : 6) — to have "suffered 
the just for the unjust that he might bring us to God," (1 Pet. iii : 18) 
-—to be "the propitiation for the sins of the whole world," (1 John 
ii : 2)— to have " died for all," (2 Cor. v : 15)— and to be " the Lamb 
of God that taketh away the sins of the world," (John i: 29.) But 
do these passages assert that Christ will save all men ? No — nor 
do they even imply this. All they assert is, that Christ by his suf- 
ferings and death has made a full and complete atonement for sin, 
and thereby opened a way in which all men may be saved. His 
work was not confined to any part of the world, but was designed to 
open the way of pardon to all men. He came into the world with 
powers and provisions adequate for all men, and made salvation 
possible to all. But it is one thing that a way should be prepared, 
and quite another to be found walking in that way. In the parable 
of the great supper the provision is abundant, and the invitation is 
full and free ; but this did not avail those who refused to comply 
with it; for it was added, "none of these men which were bidden 
shall taste of my supper." Nor will the offer of pardon freely made 
to sinners through the death of Christ, avail us any thing without 
a cordial acceptance of him. The sacrifice of Christ does not, in 
itself considered, secure the salvation of any. It is the price or 
ransom, on the efficacy of which the reconciliation of mankind 
depends. The benefits flowing from the death of Christ are freely 
offered ; but they can never be enjoyed unless we comply with the 
conditions on which they are offered. This is an important consid- 
eration which many seem to overlook. They read that " Christ 
died for all ;" that the offers of pardon and eternal life are made to 
all, and hence they conclude that all will be saved. But they should 
remember that while the offers of mercy are made to all, the prom- 
ises of mercy are to those only who comply with the terms of the 
gospel. Although Christ has died for all, yet we read of those 
" who deny the Lord that bought them," or made them his professed 
people,"and bring upon themselves swift destruction." — (2 Pet. ii : 1.) 
The death of Christ avails only on the part of true believers. To 
all others " he is a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence." — (1 



Lect.8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 171 

Pet. ii: 8.) They are condemned by the very fact that Christ ii 
come into the world. — (John iii : 19.) 

There is another class of texts, in which it is said God " hath 
no pleasure in the death of the wicked," (Ezek. xxxiii: 11) — is "not 
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repent- 
ance," (2 Pet. iii : 9) — "who will have all men to be saved and 
come to the knowledge of the truth." — (ITim.ii: 4.) Is it here 
expressly asserted that all men will be saved ? Plainly not. These 
and similar passages simply express the general benevolence of 
God, or his readiness to pardon and save repenting, returning sin- 
ners. But they do not assert that any of our race will be saved. 
The argument which the objectors to endless punishment derive 
from these passages, is this : "Whatsoever God wills, will come 
to pass. God wills the salvation of all men ; therefore all men will 
be saved." Let us examine this argument. Is not the fundamen- 
tal principle on which it is based, fallacious ? God has a purpose, and 
whatever he decrees, he will most certainly bring to pass. But it is 
not said that God has purposed to save all men. He " delights not 
in the death of the sinner ;" and " will have all men to be saved." 
Will this event then surely come to pass ? God is said to have no 
pleasure in the death of him that dieth : yet he dieth. Jehovah is 
said to have no pleasure in iniquity ; yet iniquity exists. God now 
commands all men every where to repent, and it is declared that it 
is his will that all should come to repentance, and the knowledge 
of the truth. But shall we thence infer that there are no impeni- 
tent sinners who are ignorant of the truth ? God wills the sancti- 
fication of all men. "This is the will of God even your sanctifica- 
tion." He also wills that " all men should be perfect in this life, 
even as their Father in heaven is perfect." But does this prove 
that all men are in fact now perfect ? By no means. Nor is the 
fact that God is said to will the salvation of all men any evidence 
that all will be saved. In 1 Tim. ii: 4, where God has declared by 
St. Paul, that he will have all men to be saved, the word here trans- 
lated will is not expressive of a purpose 6r decree. It is not the 
same word which the apostle uses in Rom. viii: 29, 30, and oth©r 



172 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. & 

places where he declares the gracious purposes of heaven. It here 
expresses merely the preceptive ivill of God, which requires all men 
to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. In 2 Pet. 
iii : 9, where it is said that God is not willing that any should per- 
ish, the word not ivilling cannot be understood of the ultimate de- 
termination of the Divine will. It is never used by persons who 
write good English, to express a purpose or decree. Nor does the 
Greek of Peter designate a Divine purpose ; it being the same 
word which is used by Mark xv r 15, where it is said, " Pilate will- 
ing to content the people ;" and also by Luke xxii : 42, where 
Christ says, " Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me." 
The meaning of Peter, especially if we read the whole verse, is 
obvious. The word merely expresses benevolent feelings. It is not 
the good pleasure of God, as revealed in the benevolent principles 
of the gospel that any should perish. But this does not prove that 
God has purposed the salvation of all men. 

Again, it is said, " God is the Saviour of all men," (1 Tim. iv. 10.) 
But here only a part of the sentence is quoted, " He is the Sav- 
iour of all men, especially of those that believe." The word Sav- 
iour is to be understood agreeably to its usage in other passages, 
as preserver. Thus it is used in Psalm xxxvi : 6 — " Lord, thou 
preservest man and beast ;" and in Job vii : 20 — " I have sinned, O 
thou preserver of men." By the care of his providence God pro- 
tects the bodies, and prolongs the lives of the children of men. 
And he has a general good will to the eternal salvation of all men •, 
and hence he has left no one of the human family in the same hope- 
less condition as that of fallen angels. Now if he be thus the 
Saviour of all men, will he not preserve his people ? If such is his 
good will to all his creatures, will he not provide for those who are 
by faith new creatures ? This passage is of the same import with 
that in John iii : 16 — " God so loved the world, that he gave his only 
begotten Son," not that all -men should unconditionally be saved, 
but "that whosoever believeth in him might not perish but have ever- 
lasting life." 

It is said again : " As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall a! 



Lsct.8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 178 

be made alive." — (1 Cor. xv : 22.) "In this passage," it is said, "the 
evils produced by sin are compared with the benefits received by 
Christ, and it supposes the life imparted by him will prove an un- 
speakable blessing-." But the whole context shows that the apostle 
is here speaking of temporal death and the resurrection of the body, 
and has not the remotestreferen.ee to the future conditions of either 
the righteous or the wicked. If this passage was used in reference 
to the future states of men, it would not prove that all will be saved. 
The true meaning of the apostle in the above passage is, that as 
the first Adam ruined his posterity by sin and was the cause of nat- 
ural death, so the Lord Jesus, the second Adam, will raise all man- 
kind from the dead, that in the body all may receive rewards and 
punishments according to their works. It has been supposed by 
some that the resurrection here spoken of, refers solely to Chris- 
tians. But if it includes all mankind, will it follow that all will be 
made alive in Christ by a glorious resurrection unto life ? Let the 
solemn declaration of our Lord decide. " The hour is coming, in 
the which all that are in their graves shall hear his voice, and come 
forth ; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life ; and 
they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." 

" If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature ; old things are 
passed away ; behold all things are become new." — (2 Cor. v: 17.) 
All who are savingly interested in the merits of Christ, are new 
creatures, by virtue of their union with him. Their former vicious 
inclinations, bad practices, and corrupt principles, have passed 
away. But it remains to be proved, that all will, in a saving sense, 
be in Christ. There have been sinners to whom Christ said, " De- 
part from me, IJknow you not ; ye shall die in your sins, and whither 
I go ye cannot come." None but those who are by faith, in Christ 
will ever be admitted to a participation of the joys and the glories 
of the heavenly world. 

Again : " If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, 
Jesus Christ the righteous." — (1 John ii : 1.) That Christ in any 
special sense advocates the cause of all the human race, is no where 
taught in the sacred volume. His prayer on the cross for his nnrjh 



174 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect.SV 

derers, was only for those who knew not ivliai they did. — (Luke xxiii : 
34.) " Had they known the true Messiah, they would not have 
crucified the Lord of glory." — (1 Cor. ii : 8.) Christ says expressly 
"I pray not for the ivorld, but for them which thou hast given me." 
(John xvii: 9.) Nor have we any example of Christ's ever praying 
for any more than his disciples and those who should believe on 
him through their word. As many as were given to Christ in the 
covenant of redemption shall come unto him and be saved. For 
them he offers his prevalent intercession ; for them he is an Advo- 
cate with the Father. 

The final salvation of all men is supposed to be favored by those 
passages which speak of God as being merciful. " The Lord, God, 
gracious and merciful, long-suffering 1 and abundant in goodness and 
truth, keeping mercy for thousands, and forgiving iniquity and 
transgression and sin."— (Ex. xxxiv : 6, 7.) " The Lord your God 
is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away his face from you 
if you return unto him." — (2 Chron. xxx : 9.) " The Lord is mer- 
ciful and gracious ; slow to anger and plenteous in mercy : he hath 
not dealt with us after our sins, nor rewarded us according to our 
iniquities ; for as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his 
mercy toward them that fear him ; as far as the east is from the 
west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as 
a .father pitieth his children, so hath the Lord compassion on them 
tlmt fear him." — (Ps. ciii: 8-14.) It must be manifest that these 
passages have not the remotest reference to the future conditions 
Of men. They only assert the compassion and clemency of God 
in the present life. But because God is merciful, will it follow that 
he is not angry with the wicked every day ? Because he is long- 
suffering, does it follow that he will bear with sinners eternally and 
not take vengeance ? Because he is abundant in truth, does it fol- 
low that he will violate his word, and save them that believe not 
and love not our Lord Jesus Christ ? Though the special mercy of 
God is not restricted to this life, yet it is invariably restricted to 
character. God is merciful, but he is also just and will by no means 
clear the guilty. Of the wicked it is said, " he that made them will 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 175 

not have mercy upon them, and he that formed them will show them 
no favor" "The Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over 
all his works. 7 ' — (Ps. cxlv : £).) That that mercy which is to endure 
forever is over all the works of God, is not declared. It has never 
been questioned that all mankind arc subjects of the divine benevo- 
lence in respect of the common blessings of this life. And this is 
evidently that kind of goodness of which the Psalmist speaks : — 
" Thou openest thine hand and satbflest the desire of every living 
thing.*' By all the works of God we are to understand not only the 
rational but the irrational creation. And does any one suppose 
that God has provided salvation for his irrational creatures? 

Those passages which represent the Deity as chastening his 
children with the disposition of a parent, are urged in proof that 
future punishment will be disciplinary and for the final good of all 
who enduro it. "Thou shalt consider in thine heart that as a man 
chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee." — (Deut. 
Viii : 5.) "Happy is the man whom the Lord correcteth, therefore 
despise not thou the chastening of the Lord. 5 ' — (Job v : 17.) "My 
son despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when 
thou art rebuked of him ; for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth* 
and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If you endure chasten- 
ing, God dealeth with you as with sons, for what son is he whom 
the father chasteneth not ? Furthermore we have had fathers of 
our flesh who corrected us and we gave them reverence. Shall we 
not rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For 
they verily, for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure ; 
but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.*' — 
(Heb. xii : 5-10.) These passages have no reference to a future 
state. They represent the merciful dealings of God with his crea- 
tures during their probationary state. But they do not imply, much 
less assert, a willing subjection to the Father of spirits. Many 
either despise the chastenmgs of the Lord, or faint when they are 
rebuked of him. It is true God does not in this life willingly afflict 
and grieve the children of men, but acts as a wise and good magis- 
trate who never punishes from caprice, but for the general good of 



170 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

the whole. In the present life God often punishes for the correction 
of the offender and in the future always for the general good of the 
universe. 

"I will not contend forever, neither will I be always wroth ; for 
the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made. — 
(Isa, Ivii : 36.) This passage is adduced to prove the impossibility 
of future punishment being endless. " No soul could sustain endless 
punishment ; such punishment would annihilate." It is then not 
true "there is nothing too hard for the Lord."— (Jer. xxxii : 16.) 
God cannot preserve souls to endure endless torments. The pas- 
sage speaks only of the fatherly chastisements of God to hi3 
'peculiar people' who are in the context said to put their trust in 
the Lord; and that too in the present life since it was promised 
them that they " should possess the land and inherit his holy moun- 
tain." The meaning is, that God will not contend and be wroth 
forever against them on account of their imperfections, for then 
would their faith fail and their souls sink in despair. But however 
mercifully God deals with those who are "of a contrite and humble 
spirit," '-the wicked are like the troubled sea, w r hen it cannot rest, 
whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my 
God, to the wicked." 

"He shall see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied." — (Isa. 
liiiill.) No doubt the salvation of sinners affords the Saviour 
unspeakable delight. But he will be satisfied with whatever is the 
will of his Father. And whatever may be desirable to his benevo- 
lent heart, nothing can be more so than the satisfying of the claims 
of justice. If it be said these claims require the salvation of all men 
because " the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all," I reply, 
he suffered no more for all than would have been necessary for the 
salvation of a single individual, and no other sufferings were neces- 
sary whether more are saved than will be. But Christ will be 
satisfied with the portion which the Father will divide to him. A 
division is a part divided to him out of the great family of man. 
And this is expressly stated : " Therefore will I divide him a portion 
with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong." 



Lect.8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 177 

"Repent and be baptized every one of you ; and ye shall receive 
the gift of the Holy Ghost; for the promise is unto you and to your 
children and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our 
God shall call."— (Acts ii : 38, 39.) By those afar off, it is probable 
Peter meant the Jews who were scattered in other nations ; for he 
does not seem yet to understand that the gospel is to be preached 
to the Gentiles. Yet the promise was equally applicable to the 
Gentiles as to the Jews. The Gentiles are sometimes clearly indi- 
cated by the expression afar off. Peter declared that the promise 
was to as many of the Jews and Gentiles as the Lord our God should 
call, and no more. He did not say that the Jews should receive the 
gift of the Holy Ghost unless they should " repent" and " be baptized 
in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins." 

"Thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give 
eternal life to as many as thou hast given him."— (John xvii: 2.) 
" All that the Father giveth me shall come to me, and him that 
cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." — (John vi : 37.) That God 
has given to Christ the power over all flesh is admitted. He has 
power to govern at his will and- to save or destroy. But this is not 
an assurance that ail will com« to him in the appointed way of sal- 
vation and be saved. It is no where asserted that Christ will save all 
that God has given him the power over. He has power to give eter- 
nal life to as many and no more than were given to him. A parallel 
passage is recorded in Matt, xx : 23 : " But to sit on my right hand, 
and on my left, is not mine to give except to those for whom it is 
prepared of my Father." Christ had the power of bestowing his 
favors, but he can confer them on those only who should be entitled 
to them according to the purpose of his Father. 

" The creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by 
reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope ; because the 
creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption 
into the glorious liberty of the sons of God." — (Rom. viii : 20, 21.) 
This passage is adduced to prove that the motive of God in making- 
man subject to vanity, was that he might experience salvation* 
.deliverance, and eternal redemption. This is altogether a forced: 



178 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

construction of this passage. To assert that the creature means 
ths race of man, is to assume the point which wants proof. By the 
creature (ktisis) we are not to understand mankind, but the whole 
creation animate and inanimate. By " being made subject to vanity" 
is meant that when man apostatized from his Maker, all the creatures 
of God were brought under the influence of his revolt, and made to 
subserve the cause of his rebellion. As when Achan sinned, all 
that pertained to him suffered ; so when our first parents sinned, the 
whole creation, in so far as it was connected with man, partook of 
the effects. As when a rebellion breaks out in a province, the 
resources of the country being seized by the rebels are turned to 
the support of their wicked course, so every thing which God has 
created for the accommodation of man has been by him perverted 
to the purposes of corruption. The creatures have been subjected 
to the vanity of serving idols and the lusts of men, and have them- 
selves been turned into Gods and worshipped to the exclusion of the 
Creator. In these and a thousand other ways, the creatures of God 
have been subjected to vanity. To this vanity or bondage they are 
subjected " not willingly," as was the case with man; for every 
creature naturally inclines to serve and honor its Creator. "But by 
reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope." God could 
have easily crushed the rebellion that man had raised against him 
and have delivered the creatures from their servitude. But he saw 
fit to subject the creatures to this vanity for a season, till in his own 
due time when he will deliver them from this bondage of corruption 
by other means. The time fixed for the emancipation of creation 
from under the effects of sin, is at " the manifestation of the sons of 
God," Qc the redemption of their bodies from the bondage of corrup- 
tion by the resurrection. As the whole of the creatures of God 
were cursed for man's sake, they are by a beautiful rhetorical figure 
represented as groaning under that curse, and earnestly wishing to 
be delivered from it. As the redemption or resurrection of our 
bodies will mark the period when creation shall be delivered from 
its cumbrous load of sin, it is considered as the birth day of a new 
creation. Hence the interests of the sons of God are described as- 



Lect. 8.) Or INTERPRETATION. 179 

including those of creation in general. The glorions liberty of the 
one will be the glorious liberty of the ether. "The earnest expec- 
tation of the creature waitetn for the manifestations of the sons of 
God." Now as the new heavens and the new earth will after the 
resurrection be the abode of righteousness, and no more subject to 
the vanity of subserving the cause of sin, their liberty will be the 
same as that of glorified saints. 

But whatever interpretation be given of this difficult passage, 
you will observe that there is a distinction between the ereature 
and the christian, showing that the two are not cue and the same. 
If by the creature we are to understand christians, Ave make the 
apostle to deal in unmeaning tautology, as will be seen by compar- 
ing the 22d and 23d verses. If by the creature is meant unregen- 
erate men, I would ask if they are not willingly subject to vanity ? 
It is by their own voluntary offence that they are made miserable. 
And it is not the case with all mankind that they expect or desire a 
future and glorious resurrection. Seme suppose death to be an 
eternal sleep. And among all classes of unregenerate men, there 
is nothing seen in their thoughts and pursuits expressive of the 
greatest earnestness of desire for a glorious immortality, but an 
almost total indifference to this subject. And their groaning is not 
like that of the christian, to be delivered from all the remains 
of sin. 

It is said again, "Israel shall be saved with an everlasting salva- 
tion. In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified and shall 
glory." — (Isa. xlv : 17,25.) " All Israel shall be saved ; as it is 
written : there shall come out of Zion a deliverer, and shall turn 
away ungodliness from Jacob." — (Rom. xi : So.) These and similar 
passages are adduced to prove the final salvation of all the Jews. 
But a careful examination of them will show that they are not ap- 
plicable to the Jews as individual subjects of God's moral govern- 
ment, and that they do not imply the final salvation of all the literal 
descendants of Abraham. The apostle Paul in the ninth chapter 
of his epistle to the Romans, reasons very conclusively, that, "they 
are not all Israel which are of Israel, neither because they are the 



180 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

seed of Abraham are they all children f and in the third chapter 
of his epistle to the Galatians, he shows who are the heirs of 
promise which God made to Abraham, and consequently who are 
the Israelites indeed, who shall be saved with an everlasting salva- 
tion. a If ye are Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed and heirs 
according to the promise." 

Universalists refer us to Ezekiel xvi: 44-63, in proof of the 
future emendation of the ancient Sodomites. They argue that 
u Sodom and her daughters must be taken literally for the cities of 
Sodom and the neighboring cities of the plain ; that the prophecy 
must refer to the very persons who were destroyed, seeing they 
left no descendants, and that there is therefore the same reason to 
expect the restoration of Sodom, as the fulfilment of God's gracious 
promises towards Jerusalem." This interpretation, plausible as it 
may appear, does not prove that the ancient Sodomites will be 
saved from "the vengeance of eternal fire" and admitted into the 
kingdom of heaven, but barely that they are to return to their for- 
mer estate. And does any one seriously think that after the last 
judgment the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Samaria and Jeru- 
salem, will be rebuilt and their ancient inhabitants repossess them? 
Whoever believes this, is not to be reasoned with. Where it is 
said, " When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of 
Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her 
daughters, and then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives 
in the midst of them," (Ezek. xvi : 53,) the prophet is describing 
that the captivity of the wicked Jews and their ruin shall be irre- 
coverable as that of Sodom and Samaria. As Sodom and Samaria 
were never brought back nor returned to their former state, let not 
the Jews who are now in captivity expect it. Sooner shall the 
Sodomites arises out of the salt sea and the Samaritans return from 
the land of Assyria, than the wicked Jews who are now scattered 
among all the nations of the earth for their hurt, again enjoy peace 
and prosperity in their native land. This is the language of keen 
reproof. 

It is very plain from the passage itself that the prophet does not 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 181 

speak of the restoration of the ancient inhabitants of the literal 
Sodom, which God destroyed by a storm of fire and brimstone 
from heaven. For if it be admitted that the Jews who were now in 
captivity were themselves to be delivered from their bondage to the 
Babylonians, this deliverance the Jews were to receive, according to 
the passage, "in the midst of Sodom and her daughters and Samaria 
and her daughters." But the Jews were never delivered from the 
Babylonish captivity in ike midst of or in connection with the Sodom- 
ites that perished in the days of Abraham. Hence all attempts to 
prove from the passage the restoration of those Sodomites from the 
abodes of woe, is trifling in the extreme. The prophet says nothing 
about the deliverance of the literal Sodom from the "vengeance of 

o 

eternal fire," and nothing about such a deliverance o r { Samaria and 
Jerusalem. 

In the latter part of this chapter (verses 60-63^ w e have the lan- 
guage of free mercy to the penitent. God dec 1 ^red that he would 
take them into covenant with himself, and be r acified towards them. 
But this is not addressed to the same individ ua i s against whom the 
threatnings are directed. It contains a p , re cious promise which 
was fulfilled in part at the return of the pe n itentand reformed Jews 
cut of Babylon, and which will be full 1 accomplished under the 
gospel dispensation, when the Jews sh^ \\ b e brought in with the 
fullness of the Gentiles. 

"Moab shall be destroyed from be' ino . a people. Yet will I bring 

again the captivity of Moab in the h tter d a y S ." ( Jer. xiviii : 42, 47.) 

"But it shall come to pass in the ] ^ er ^ a y S that I will bring again 

the captivity of Elam, saith the hr ^.^ » / j er . x ji x : 39.) From these 

passages it is inferred that the Moabites and Elamites " are to be 
I restored to happiness in afv ^ fe staU unless these express promises 
of God fail of being accorm m%h e &» But these declarations respect- 
ing Moab and Elam hav ^ ^ reference t o their future state. These 
threatnings and pror- ^ respecting them have long since been 
literally fulfilled by j^ vrtat* captiv i t y and their deliverance 
from it. J 

Moab was ma ^ ^.^ fiye yeMg after tne destruction of Jwa- 

p 

/ 



182 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

salem, and was carried beyond the Euphrates as the prophets had 
threatened, (Jer. ix : 2G — xii : 14, 15 — xlviii : 47,) but they were after- 
wards restored to their native land. 

Elam, sometimes called Elymais, was a province of Persia. The 
word sometimes denotes the whole country possessed by the ancient 
Persians. The Elamites, like the Moabites, were made captives 
by Nebuchadnezzar, according to the divine threatning by the 
prophet; but when Cyrus had destroyed Babylon, and brought the 
empire into the hands of the Persians, the Elamites no doubt return- 
ed in triumph out of all the countries whither they were scattered, 
and settled again in their own country. They were among the 
instruments- mployed by divine providence in the deliverance of 
the Jews from\ their captivity in Babylon. 

But if we adroit that these promises made to Moab and Elam 
were promises of .spiritual and saving- blessings, we have no occasion 
to leave the earth* and search the regions of wretchedness and 
despair. These wiL have their accomplishment in the days of the 
Messiah, when the Ge utiles under the yoke of sin and Satan, shall 
be brought back by divi ne grace. These nations have never been 
entirely cut off from the k earth. Hence their restoration cannot be 
from the abodes of woe I DUt fr° m their national and their spiritual 
captivity. 

"Behold the rio-hteous slk^ be recompensed in the earth, much 

more the wicked and the sin) ner# " — (Prov. Xl: 31.) This passage 

is adduced to prove that the wi> "ked receive all the punishment that 

they deserve in the present lil. e - But ^ tne text P roves this, ft 

equally proves that the righteou£ * receive their full recompense in 

this life, and so there is no happn ncss reserved for them in the 

world to come. Further, this interpr* ,tation is not onl y contrary to 

plain facts and the whole tenor of the\ Blble ' but il emirel y set3 

aside the grace of the gospel. Were all a ie0 P umsbed in tllis ]ife 

to the full extent of their deserts there wou$ ] be n ° nGcd of a Sav " 

iour, and no room for the exercise of mercy. 1 ' ' hc obvioU9 meaning 

of the text is that the righteous will receive some' ' SP ° Cial t0k€nS ° f 

the divine favor even in this life, and the sinner wk " U b ° VisltCd W H 



Lect.8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 183 

divine judgments. Though the present is not a state of perfect yet 
it is a state of providential retribution. Though many sins go un- 
punished in the earth, and services unrewarded -which indicates that 
there is a judgment to come, yet the righteous are often recom- 
pensed for their righteousness in the earth. The wicked, also, and 
the sinner are sometimes signally punished in this life. And if the 
righteous who do not deserve the least reward have part of their 
recompense in this world, much more shall the wicked who deserve 
the most severe punishment have part of their punishment on earth 
as an ernest of the wrath to come. This is a warning to the wick- 
ed. Stand in awe and sin not! " If those have two heavens who 
merit none, much more shall they have two hells that merit both." 

" But the wisdom that is from above, is first pure, then peaceable, 
gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, 
without partiality, and without hypocrisy." — (James iii : 17.) "God 
is no respecter of persons : but in every nation he that feareth him 
and worketh righteousness is accepted with him." — (Acts x: 34,35.) 
It is argued from these passages that God treats all his rational 
creatures in every respect alike. But this is contradicted by all 
experience and scripture. The inequalities found in the divine 
distribution of good and evil in this life is as much a proof of partial- 
ity, as rewards and punishments in the life to come. True, God is 
not a respecter of persons. But this does not refer to the doctrine 
of divine sovereignty. It simply affirms that God will not save a 
man because he is a Jew, nor because he possesses any external 
privileges. But it does not affirm that he will not make a difference 
in their character, and then treat them according to their character. 
Though none are to be saved by external privileges, and none to be 
lost by want of them, yet God invariably will respect character ; 
and " he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted 
with him." 

" Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty ; with thy 
glory and thy majesty. And in thy majesty ride prosper- 
ously, because of truth, and meekness and righteousness ; and let 
thy right hand teach thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp 



184 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

in the hearts of the King's enemies ; whereby the people fall under 
thee." — (Ps. xlv : 3-6.) What are the terrible things performed by 
the right hand of the mighty King of Zion. He rides prosperously 
when he destroys his incorrigible enemies, as well as when he 
brings sinners to bow to the sceptre of his grace. And the psalm- 
ist speaks of the former event as well as the latter. The right 
hand of Christ, expert in warfare, and his arrows of mercy and 
wrath will readily execute his purpose. And those who do not bow 
to his sceptre of mercy, must fall so as to be made his footstool. 

"Ask of me and 1 shall give thee the heathen for thine inheri- 
tance and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession." — 
(Ps. ii:8.) Christ began to have the heathen for his inheritance 
when the gospel was first published to the Gentiles, and he will 
have the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession in the time 
o ( f the Millennium. But this does not prove the salvation of all who 
have died in their sins. 

"In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage 
but are as the angels of God in heaven." — (Matt, xxii : 30— Luke 
xx : 35, 38.) From these passages it is argued that all men in the 
future world will be like the angels of God — holy, spotless and 
pure. But this is said only of those men who are counted worthy to 
obtain that world, and not of all men. 

"And he shall send Jesus, which before was preached unto you, 
whom the heavens must receive, until the times of restitution of all 
things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets 
since the world began." — (x\cts iii: 20, 21.) This passage is addu- 
ced to prove the final restoration of all wicked men and devils from 
their abodes of mjsery to final happiness at some period beyond the 
resurrection and the last judgment. But the times of restitution 
cannot mean any period beyond the last judgment ; for till then and 
no longer will the heavens detain Christ. This truth had frequently 
been declared by the mouth of the holy prophets. The common 
belief of the Jews was that the Messiah would reign on the earth 
forever. Hence it was important that the apostles should establish 
the fact that he had ascended to heaven. It was necessary that he 



Lect.8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 185 

should do this, to direct the affairs of the universe for the welfare 
of the Church, and that he should there exercise his office as a priest 
in interceding for his people. "Until the times of restitution." 
This implies that he would then return to earth ; but it does not 
imply that he would not again ascend to heaven. "Restitution of 
all things." The noun rendered restitution (apokatastaseos) has the 
idea of consummation, completion, fulfilment. Thus it is used by the 
Greek classics. In this sense the passage means that the heavens 
must receive the Lord Jesus until all things spoken by the prophets 
in relation to his work, his reign, the spread of the gospel, and the 
triumph of the cross, shall have been fulfilled. "All things." 9 All 
things spoken of by the prophets, and no more. The expression is 
limited by the connection to this; and of course it does not prove 
that all men shall be saved, or that all the evils of sin can be re- 
moved. This can never be ; for the mischief has been done and 
can never be undone. But every thing which has been foretold by 
the prophets, shall receive their completion. The utter overthrow 
of the powers of darkness ; the destruction of the last enemy death ; 
the bringing baGk of peace and righteousness to flow in their ancient 
channels, and the final adjustment of all human affairs, may with 
great propriety be called "the times of restitution of all things." 
But nothing of this implies the restoration of wicked men and devils 
to their original state. " Suppose a formidable conspiracy should 
break out in one of the provinces of an earthly king; if he should 
crush this rebellion and call the offenders to justice, and punish 
some and pardon others, and restore law and order in his revolted 
province, such a period might be termed a restitution of all things. 
But this would not imply that all the conspirators would be restored 
to all their privileges and dignities."* Besides, if the phrase im- 
plies the salvation of all men at last, then the discourse of Peter 
amounts to this : " Repent and be converted that your sins may be 
blotted out, since you live under the times of the gospel, the reign 
of the Messiah, the times of refreshing ; because at the times of 
restitution your sins will be blotted out whether you do or do not 

* Fuller. 



186 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8, 

repent." And was this the motive by which Peter urged the great 
duty of repentance ? Was it not rather that they should seek to 
avoid the vengeance due to the wicked, and to be admitted to 
heaven when the Lord Jesus shall return to judge the world? 

"1 will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between 
thy seed and her seed ; it shall bruise thy head and thou shalt 
bruise his heel." — (Gen. iii : 15.) From this passage it is contended 
that " Moses, one of the earliest prophets, foretold the destruction 
of all evil, when he represented sin under the figure of a serpent 
whose head the seed of the woman was to bruise." But who would 
suppose that bruising the head of a General, strikes him and all his 
army into non-existence ? A serpent's head may be much bruised 
without terminating his existence. In like manner the power and 
kingdom of Satan may be much circumscribed, and yet he may live 
in sin and wretchedness forever. Satan was to have his head 
bruised and his dominion reduced within narrow limits, but what is 
this to do with the salvation of all men? But if it be contended 
that by Satan is meant moral evil only, to have its head bruised by 
the seed of the woman does not prove the salvation of all men. 

"Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people, and upon thy 
holy city, to finish the transgression and to make an end of sins 3 and 
to make reconciliation for iniquity." — (Dan. ix: 24.) This passage. 
is uro-ed to Drove that God will make an end of sin after the resur- 
rection and the last judgment, by restoring all mankind to his favor. 
But the passage has no reference to any period beyond time, since 
what is here related or predicted was to be accomplished within 
seventy years or within seventy weeks, that is, four hundred and 
fifty years from the time of the commencement of the prophecy,* 

* Some have proposed a different translation of this difficult passage". They 
•appose this declaration of the angel to contain an answer to Daniel's prayer, 
who was anxious lo know when the seventy years of captivity would be termin- 
ated. They render the passage thus : " The seventy years indeed concerning 
thy people, and concerning thy holy city, to finish the transgression, to end sins, 
lo expiate iniquity, to bring buck the righteousness of ancient times, and to 
complete the vision of the prophet and to consecrate the sanctuary, are termin- 
ating. 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 187- 

This prophecy has long since been accomplished. And does any 
one seriously believe that an end has been made of all sin? Is 
there no moral evil now in the world ? He who denies this, contra- 
dicts the plain dictates of reason and common sense, as well as the 
most decisive declarations of the Bible. And cannot God be said 
to make an end of sin unless all the individuals in creation are con- 
verted? When God said to Zedekiah, " thou profane and wicked 
prince of Israel, whose days are come when iniquity shall have an 
end," (Ezek. xxi ; 25,) did he mean that he was then restored to the 
divine favor and freed from all sin ? And when God said to his 
people, that " their iniquity had an end," (Ezek. xxxv : 5,) does he 
mean that they were then m a state of sinless perfection ? Rather 
is it not manifest that by sin and iniquity having an end is meant 
that the perpetrators of them had filled up the measure of their 
iniquity, and that they for the punishment of their sins should be 
shut up in Babylon, as in a prison, and rendered incapable of doing 
further mischief? Such was the accomplishment of the prophecy 
under consideration, which though it may have a bearing upon the 
return of the Jews from their captivity, yet it extends down to the 
advent of the Messiah. Christ came to take away sins. He is " the 
Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world." Not that he 
has actually removed ail sin or guilt from the world, but that he has 
made abundant provision for the cancelling of human guilt, and 
instituted means for taking away the sin of the world. In this sense 
he has expiated sin and restrained transgression 5 though multitudes 
have much more sin than if he had done nothing. But suppose that 
we admit that to end sins or to take away the sin of the world did 
import its actual removal, the expression would be perfectly consist- 
ent with the endless perdition of ungodly men. The disciples of 
Christ though b, part of the human family, " are not of the world." — 
(John xvii : 16.) 

"Thou hast created all things, and fbr thy pleasure they are and 
were created." — (Rev. iv : 11.) The "pleasure of the Lord shall 
prosper in his (Christ's) hands." — (fea. liii : 10.) " 3o shall thy word 
be that goeth forth out of thy mouth ; it shall not return unto me 



188 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8; 

void ; but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall pros- 
per in the thing whereto I send it." — (Isa. lv : 11.) "I will do all 
my pleasure." — (Isa. xlvi : 10.) Here it is said, " God created all 
men for his pleasure and therefore not for ultimate death, and that 
surely his pleasure will be accomplished." The fact that God's 
ultimate will as it respects the destinies of the universe, will be 
answered, no one disputes. But that it is not his will at the wind- 
ing up of all scenes of time, to send forth his angels and gather out 
of his kingdom all things that offend and the which do iniquity, and 
cast them into a furnace of fire, where shall be wailing and gnash- 
ing of teeth, is the point to be proved. If this cannot be done, it 
cannot be proved that God will eventually make all men completely 
happy. These passages would have been to the point if they had 
asserted that it was the purpose of God to save all men. 

"Being put to death in the flesh but quickened by the spirit ; by 
which spirit also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, 
which sometimes were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of 
God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was preparing." 
(1 Pet. iii: 18-20.) It is argued from this passage that " though 
the old world were disobedient in the days of Noah and perished in 
their iniquity, yet Jesus owned them by visiting them in their prison 
after death ;" he "preached to them the gospel of salvation, though 
they had died in their sins so many years before ;" therefore " all 
who perish in every age will have the same privilege and will be 
saved." But admitting that Christ after his death did actually visit 
the spirits of the old world in their prison of woe, and there preach 
to them the gospel ; it would not follow that all who perish in 
every age will have the same privilege and be saved. The gospel 
is now preached to many who are not savingly benefitted by it ; but 
live and die in their sins. And admitting that Christ did actually 
preach to these spirits in prison, what evidence have we that they 
did not treat his message as wicked men treat it on earth ? The 
passage, however, rightly understood, gives no intimation that 
Christ did, after his death on the cross, visit the spirits of the old 
world. Christ by the same Spirit who made him alive, is said to 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 189 

have preached to the antedeluvians, because his spirit inspired Noah 
to preach to them, as is plain from Gen. vi: 3, "My spirit shall not 
always strive with man.'' Hence Noah is called " a preacher of 
righteousness." As the economy of man's redemption from the 
beginning has been under the direction of Christ, the preaching of 
the ancient prophets is attributed directly to him. And the Spirit 
who was in the ancient prophets is expressly affirmed to be the 
a Spirit of Christ." Thus Christ by his Spirit upon the mind and 
through the ministration of Noah preached to the old world. The 
time when he went and preached was when the long suffering of 
God waited in the days of Noah while the ark w r as preparing. It 
was during the one hundred and twenty years in which Noah was 
a preacher of righteousness. During that period when the patience 
of God waited for the reformation of the old world and he delayed 
the deluge. The spirits in prison are expressly said to have been 
disobedient in the days of Noah ; hence we cannot suppose that 
(pneumasi) spirits is of the same signification as (psuchai) souls, 
verse 20, The apostle is speaking of the antedeluvians in their 
present state. They were men on earth in the flesh when Christ 
preached to them by his spirit, but they are now " spirits in prison," 
detained like the fallen angels unto the judgment of the great day. 
This gives an easy sense to the passage, and at the same time does 
not interfere with any doctrine of the Bible. 

If any one should choose to understand by the prison either the 
human body or human corruptions, the passage will be equally far 
from affording the least countenance and support to the doctrine of 
universal salvation. For the fact that Christ preached to the ante- 
deluvians by his Spirit while they were in the body, wallowing in 
their corruptions, is no evidence that they will ever be restored to 
the moral image and favor of God. Many now hear the gospel who 
do not believe and obey its precepts, and it is to them a "savour of 
death unto death/' 

Another class of texts which are thought to favor the doctrine of 
universal reconciliation, consist of such as speak of Christ as " reign- 
ing until he hath put all enemies under his feet," (1 Cor. xv:25,)— 



190 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

of "every knee bowing to Christ, 5 ' (Isa.xi: 23.) — and of "ail things 
in heaven, on earth, and under the earth, bowing at the name of 
Jesus," (Phil, ii: 10.) These and similar texts are in the highest 
degree figurative, and are to be understood with such limitations as 
are necessarily suggested by the nature of the subject and other 
plain declarations of scripture. The most that a fair interpretation 
of the texts in question can be made to prove, is the glorious exal- 
tation of Christ as head over the Church, and over all things unto 
the Church, and the subjection of all things to his coatrol. Doubt- 
less the Lord Jesus will rule till he has put all enemies under his 
feet. "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." This 
language is manifestly used in reference to the resurrection of the 
bodies of those w 7 ho sleep in Jesus. For "when this corruption 
shall put on incorruption then shall be brought to pass the saying, 
death is swallowed up in victory." This is the same thing as the 
last enemy being destroyed. And when the resurrection is accom- 
plished and the judgment finished, and the righteous introduced 
into the presence of God, " then cometh the end" of the present 
state of things, "when he shall have delivered up (or re-established) 
the kingdom to the Father ; when he shall have put down all (oppo- 
sing) rule, and all authority and power." But does this mean that 
he will save all men ? One would think " to be placed under foot" 
denotes the condition not of friends but of vanquished rebels. Fur- 
ther, these things are to attend the last judgment, and do not include 
the "second death" which is the wages of sin. 

Doubtless " every knee shall bow to Christ." But is this neces- 
sarily expressive of a holy and voluntary submission to him ? Is it 
a proof that all will be saved? Surely not. The submission of 
every knee in heaven, earth and hell, to Jesus, is no more a proof 
that all will be saved than the confession of the devil that Christ 
was the Son of Cod was an evidence that he was a proper subject 
of salvation. The same inspired writer applies this language to the 
universal conviction which shall be produced at the general judg- 
ment, when " every mouth shall be stopped and all the world become 
guilty before God." "We shall all stand before the judgment seat 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 191 

of Christ ; for it is written, As I live saith the Lord, every knee 
shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then 
every one shall give account of himself to God."— (Rom.xiv : 10-12. 
Another passage adduced, as affirming that all mankind will be 
ultimately restored to purity and happiness, is this : " Having made 
known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure, 
which he purposed in himself; concerning the dispensation of the 
fulness of times, that he would gather together to himself, in one 
all things through Christ, which are in the heavens, and which are 
on the earth : even in him.'' — (Eph. 1 : 9, 10.) By the dispensation 
we are to understand the plan which God had formed for gathering 
together all believers in one visible Church under Christ as their 
head. The word (oikGnomai) properly signifies a plan formed for 
the management of any business. By the (tapania) all things, we 
are to understand all holy beings. This passage supposes that sin 
has effected a disunion between men and the other parts of the 
universe. But through the mediation of Christ a reunion is effected. 
By the blood of Christ believers are reconciled to him, and through 
him they are united to all who love him throughout the extent of 
his creation. "The interpretation of the ancient fathers," says 
Whitby, "seems to give this sense, that God hath by this dispensa- 
tion gathered under one head, viz. Christ, the head of the Church, 
all things on earth, that is, believers of all nations, Jews and Gen- 
tiles, and all things in heaven, that is, the angelic hosts." By 
" things in heaven' 5 Beza understands the glorified saints who died 
before Christ came into the world, and who are not to be made 
perfect till the resurrection. It is the design of God to unite in one 
happy society all holy beings under one head who is Jesus Christ. 
Surely nothing can be gathered from this passage to favor the 
doctrine of universal salvation. It does not imply, much less assert, 
that all men will be ultimately restored to purity and happiness. If 
we take the phrase all things in its most extended sense, as inclu- 
ding the whole ereation animate and inanimate, this expresses only 
the universal dominion of Christ. But how this involves the salva- 
tion of all men does not appear. 



192 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect.8. 

Much reliance is placed by the objectors to endless punishment 
on this text : " It hath pleased the Father that in him, (Christ,) all 
fullness should dwell; and having made peace through the blood of his 
cross, by him to reconcile all things untdliimself ; by him, I say, wheth- 
er they be things in heaven, or things in earth."— Col. i : 19, 20.) If 
by the reconciliation of all things in heaven and in earth is denoted 
the salvation of all the inhabitants of heaven and earth, it would 
follow, that the holy angels are saved. But salvation is deliverance 
from sin and punishment. This the sinless angels cannot experi- 
ence. Further, if by all things in heaven and earth we understand 
all their inhabitants are to be reconciled, the apostle must have 
dealt in unmeaning tautology when he declared to the Collossians : 
"And you that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your minds 
by wicked works yet now hath he reconciled." — (Col. i : 21.) The 
word (apokatallaxai) translated to reconcile, signifies here to unite, 
simply ; because the good angels are said to be reconciled to Christ 
who were never at variance with him. The meaning of the passage 
is that through the blood of the cross all holy beings are united in 
one blessed society under Christ as their head, and that peace is 
established between God and the sinner and between sinners them- 
selves. 

Much reliance is placed by these objectors under consideration 
on those passages which speak of " all the ends of the earth remem- 
bering and turning to the Lord," and of " all the kindreds of the 
nations coming and worshipping before him ;"' (Ps. xxii : 27)— of "all 
nations — glorifying his name ;" (Ps. lxxxvi : 9) — of "all the kings 
of the earth praising the Lord ;" (Ps. cxxxviii: 4) — of "the glory 
of the Lord being revealed, and all flesh seeing of it together ;" 
(Isa. xl: 5) — of "all the ends of the earth seeing the salvation of 
the Lord ;" (lsa. Jx : 10) — and of " the people being all righteous ;" 
(Isa. lx: 21. But texts of this descriptions it is manifest to every 
eandid, intelligent student of the Bible, have not the remotest ref- 
erence to the subject They are glorious predictions of the com- 
ing spiritual reign of Christ on earth, in the latter-day glory of the 
Church, when the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the glory 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 193 

of God. Then indeed shall the ends of the earth turn unto the 
Lord, and all the kindreds of the earth shall come and worship 
before him. Then^hall the gtory of the Lord be revealed, and the 
ends of the earth shall see liis salvation. The Church of Christ 
will then arrive to a state of prosperity which it has never yet en- 
joyed. Christianity will be diffused through all nations and Christ 
will reign on earth by his spiritual presence in a glorious manner. 
In fact the knowledge of the Lord shall fill the earth as the waters 
cover the sea. And who knows but the present convulsions among 
the different nations, the overthrow which popery has had in places 
where it has been dominant for centuries, and the present efforts to 
promote the cause of benevolent exertion, are forerunners of events 
which may usher in the happy morn of that bright and glorious day 
when the whole world shall be filled with the glory of God ? But 
what has the future spread of the gospel and the conversion of the 
world to do in proving the final salvation of those who have lived 
and died in their sins? Surprising that those who are accounted 
teachers in Israel should infer from texts which predict the Millen- 
nium when the world shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, 
that all will be saved ! 

I grant that in the account of the new heavens and the new earth 
which we have recorded in the 21st chapter of Revelations, it is 
said among other things that " there shall be no more death," and 
afterwards, " no more curse." But who would think of applying this 
to all mankind, since it is said in the same chapter that " the fearful, 
and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whore- 
mongers, and sorcerers, and idolators, and all liars shall have their 
part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the 
second death." 

" I will ransom them from the power of the grave ; I will redeem 
them from death. O death, I will be thy plagues ; O grave, I will 
be thy destruction." — (Hosea xiii: 14.) But how the assertion that 
God would ransom from the power of the grave the men of Ephraim 
and prevent the ravages of death among them, proves that all men 



J94 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect.S. 

will be raised from the grave to a glorious immortality, is not clear 
to every mind. 

6 So also in the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, 
it is raised in incorruption — it is raised in glory — it is raised a spir- 
itual body." — (1 Cor. xv: 42-44.) Here it is said "Paul in his 
account of the resurrection does not admit of the existence of sin in 
the future state. When he cries out triumphantly, ( O death where 
is thy sting V he certainly means that sin was absent, for 'the sting 
of death is sin.'" 

The fact that Paul does not teach future punishment in a given 
passage, does not exclude his teaching of it in another. That sin 
was absent from those who, in the words of the apostle, could 
triumph over death, is admitted. But he who reads the chapter 
will look in vain for evidence that this triumph is reserved for all. 
He will discover no evidence that those who die in a state of enmity 
against God and holiness, will get the victory over death through 
our Lord Jesus Christ 

It is said all must be saved, for " God hath not appointed us to 
wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ."— r(l 
Thess. v : 9.) The apostle speaks this of himself and of his breth- 
ren, and gives it no application to those who remain children of 
wrath ; and who will presume to take the children's bread and give 
it to dogs ? 

"Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death 
by sin ; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned; 
(for until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed where 
there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, 
even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's 
transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. But not 
as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence 
of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by 
grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. 
And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift; for the judg- 
ment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many 
offences unto justification. For if by one man's offence death 



Lsct.8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 195 

reigned by one ; much more they which receive abundance of grace, 
and of the gift of righteousness, shall reign in life by one, Jesus 
Christ.) Therefore as by the offence of one, judgment came upon 
all men to condemnation ; even so by the righteousness of one, the 
free gift is come upon all men to justification of life. For as by one 
man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience 
of one many shall be made righteous. Moreover, the law entered, 
that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did 
much more abound ; that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so 
might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus 
Christ our Lord."— (Rom. v : 12-21.) The style of the apostle in 
this passage is remarkably intricate and perplexed ; and many 
things in it are hard to be understood. And I trust you will not, 
my hearers, be so rash as to risk your eternal destiny upon the cor- 
rectness of the doubtful interpretation of a single passage. We 
must suppose the apostle always consistent with himself in his 
writings ; but if we allow this passage to mean that the whole hu- 
man race will without exception be restored to virtue and happiness, 
it contradicts a multitude of other passages in his writings which 
are plainly against that doctrine. 

To give a just exposition of this beautiful and sublime passage, 
it is necessary to understand the scope of the epistle and the par- 
ticular design of the apostle in this place. The scope of this part 
of the epistle is to show that justification before God can be obtain- 
ed, either by Jews or Gentiles, only by faith in his Son. "Being 
justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ 
Jesus." " By whom also we have access by faith into this grace in 
which we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." By a 
connected body of evidence, the apostle proves that both Jews and 
Gentiles are under sin, and consequently incapable of being justified 
by a righteous God on the ground of their own merits. Since all 
have sinned and come short of heaven, they cannot be justified or 
acquitted from the sentence of condemnation under which they lie 
by any works of their own, but of free grace through the redemption 
of Jesus Christ. 



196 TRUE PRINCIPLES (Lect. 8. 

The particular design of the apostle in this place, i$ to show on 
what grounds justified believers rejoice in God through Jesus Christ, 
by whom they have received the means of reconciliation. — (ver. 11.) 
These are illustrated by an appeal to the connection between Adam 
and his descendants who are all joined with him in sin and its con- 
sequences. He affirms that sin entered into the world by Adam r 
and that all his posterity are with him involved in guilt, and exposed 
to death, temporal, spiritual, and eternal. "By the offence and diso- 
bedience of one, many were made or (constituted) sinners, and judg- 
ment came upon all men to condemnation." So, argues the apostle ; 
believers in Christ have a peculiar and endeared connection with 
him. This connection is different in its principle from that of Adam 
and his posterity, yet it is not less certain. As all his posterity 
were joined with Adam in sin, and were in a state of condemnation^. 
so believers are joined with Christ by his free grace, and are in a 
state of justification. This connection between Adam and his pos- 
terity and Christ and believers, differs in this respect. Tht sentence 
of condemnation tvas for one offence only, but the gracious gift of 
pardon is of many offences to righteousness to the person who is par- 
doned. Now if it is consistent with justice that Adam and his 
posterity should be connected with sin and its consequences, much 
more is it consistent with justice and goodness that they who 
receive the overflowing of grace and of the gift of Christ's right- 
eousness by imputation shall reign in a happy life through Jesus 
Christ. The benefits flowing to believers through the death of 
Christ, however, infinitely outweigh the evils flowing from the sin 
of Adam. 

The abounding grace of which the apostle speaks, refers to the 
number and magnitude of sins forgiven, and not to the number of 
persons who receive it, unless you fall into the absurdity of suppo- 
sing that more are saved in Christ than were constituted sinners by 
the fall. " Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." 
Even where the introduction of the written law had charged human 
guilt with its heaviest aggravations, there the introduction of the 
gospel unfolded a depth of contrivance, power and compassion in 



Lect. 8.) OF INTERPRETATION. 197 

the divine mind fully adequate to the exigencies of the case. And 
it is reasonable to suppose that it should be so ; because the good- 
ness of God disposes to bestow blessings through Christ infinite in 
decree as well as in duration. Thus he who receives and relies 
upon the gospel of Christ for pardon and acceptance with God, shall 
find the grace of God revealed in it as flowing through the cross, 
infinitely to exceed his most enlarged conceptions, wants and 
desires. Where sin has abounded, as to degrees of demerit it has 
limits, though the punishment annexed to it is unlimited in duration ; 
but the grace of God is unlimited in degree as well as in duration. 
The riches of Christ are Unsearchable,, They spring from an inex- 
haustible source. This is undoubtedly the argument of the apostle. 
Notwithstanding all the obscurity and perplexity of his language, 
arising from the nature of the subject and the omission in some 
cases of the second member of comparison, which he supposes the 
reader to have supplied in his own mind, whoever reads the passage 
with attention must perceive that these were the leading ideas which 
the apostle had in his mind. 

These passages which I have briefly noticed, are I believe the 
strongest which can be brought to overthrow the doctrine of 
endless punishment and to establish the hypothesis of universal 
salvation. Whether they are sufficient to set aside the multitudes 
of plain and positive declarations of scripture which have been 
adduced in the preceding Lectures in proof of endless punishment, 
I leave it with my hearers to decide. One thing is plain ; there is 
not a single passage of scripture that denies the endless duration of 
future punishment. But if it is not a Bible doctrine, ought we not 
to expect such a denial ? The belief of that doctrine must occasion 
in the minds of some at least, painful apprehensions. Nov/ Christ 
endeavored to remove from the minds of his hearers all painful 
apprehensions of things that would never tahe place. We have 
already seen that in the time of Christ and his apostles the doctrine 
of endless punishment was the common doctrine of the day. Should 
we not then expect that if there was no punishment endless in dura- 
tion, they would have assured the world that their doctrine was 



193 TRUE PRINCIPLES, &c. (Lect.8. 

false ? Further ; they inveighed against every error $ however 
powerful and popular or weak and contemptible. Why then did 
they n<)t lift a warning voice against the belief of the doctrine of 
endlesfc punishment ? 

Th^re is not a single passage in the Bible that directly asserts or 
even implies the final salvation of all men. This doctrine is not 
derived from plain and direct declarations of scripture, but from 
strained explanations, from far-fetched inferences, and from a 
wretched perversion of language. In short, that theory which 
denies the doctrine of endless punishment and advocates the final 
salvation of all men, is but "the baseless fabric of a vision," advo- 
cated by those only who wish to find happiness apart from holiness. 
Every one who is willing to give his heart to God, will be satisfied 
to seek admittance into the kingdom of heaven by becoming holy 
in Christ Jesus, and will think too much of its purity to dream of 
meeting there the impure ; while he will have too much good sense 
to assume the idea of any purification which is not commenced in 
this life. But others will wrest the scriptures to their own destruc- 
tion. Those of them who should watch for souls as they that must 
give account, will prophesy smooth things in saying to the wicked 
it shall be well with him, and lead thousands of deluded beings 
blindfold to hell with themselves. " O my soul come not thou into 
their secret ; unto their assembly mine honor, be not thou united." 
That this may not be your sin and punishment may the Lord prevent 
by his grace, and may you all strive to enter into heaven at the 
strait gate. 



ON THE ARGUMENTS WHICH THE OBJECTORS TO 

TEE DOCTRINE OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT URGE 
AGAINST THAT DOCTRINE. 

Gen. iii: 4. — "Ye shall not surely dieP 

From the sacred annals of the Hebrews, the only authentic 
account of primeval ages, we learn that after the Deity had spake 
into being this mighty globe, he created and placed upon it the 
father and founder of the whole human race. " And God said, let 
us make man in our image; after our likeness." — (Gen. i : 26.) 
Adam was created in the image and likeness of his Maker. His 
understanding was enlightened, his will was holy, and his passions 
and affections were pure. With him there was no warfare between 
the flesh and the spirit. The propensities of his nature were in 
sweet accordance with the dictates of his pure mind. And as he 
was without any principle of imperfection or corruption, the past, 
the present, and the future with him had no regret, no guilt, no 
terror. 

He was placed in the garden of Eden, where, with countenance 
glowing with the lestre of perfect innocence and beauty, and with 
an intelligent mind that raised him high in the scale of created 
beings, he walked the shady groves, gazed on the majestic scenery 
of nature, and looked "through nature up to nature's God." He 
was a very glorious being ; the favorite of heaven, and the lord of 
this lower world. But though every object around and within was 
adapted to fill him with the most exquisite delight, still his paradise 



200 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect.9, 

was incomplete. Endowed with a social nature, he had no society* 
Of all the creatures which God had made, there were none with 
whom he could associate ; none to share his pleasures ; none to 
whom he could communicate his sentiments. He was alone. This 
defect however scarcely existed, before it was supplied by the good- 
ness of his Maker. Thus were things peculiarly adapted to the 
accommodation of man. The positive command of God to Adam in 
paradise not to eat of " the tree of knowledge of good and evil,'* 
which was given for the trial of his obedience, so exactly accorded 
with his holy nature that it did not infringe upon his happinesss. 

Happy were the human pair amidst the delightful garden until a 
certain prophet, and the first of Universalist prophets, in his journey 
came that way and disturbed their peace and tranquillity by endeav- 
oring to reverse the prohibition of the Almighty, and predicting as 
in our text, "Ye shall not surely die" All his endeavors were very 
artful. He assumed th^ form of the serpent that he might the better 
succeed with his temptations, and hence he is culled the "old 
serpent, the devil." 

He begins by first calling in question the truth of God, and 
insinuating that the terms which he had prescribed were severe, if 
not capricious. "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall net eat of every 
tree of the garden?" He then deals in positive assertions. In 
contradiction to the divine assurance, he affirms with unhesitating 
effrontery, that our first parents should net die, even though they 
tasted of the fruit of the interdicted tree. As truth and falsehood 
are directly opposed to each other, Satan hesitates not to make God 
a liar, and to echo his words with a fiat contradiction, "Ye shall not 
surely die /" And he confidently asserts that God knew if they eat 
of the forbidden fruit they would be advanced to honor, and happi- 
ness, and power. Alas, how often has man been flattered and 
enticed into sin at the expense of God himself. Surely we need 
not be at a loss in judging whence those doctrines proceed which 
invalidate the divine threatning, and teach sinners going on still in 
their tresspasses, "ye shall not surely die." From that day in 
which our first mother was beguiled by the subtlety of the serpent. 



Lect. 9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT, 201 

to the present, Satan has been carrying on the same delusion in the 
hearts of the children of men, tempting them to sin, and lulling their 
consciences into security by whispering to them, " Ye shall not 
surely die." While they are committing the very acts, and indulging 
the very propensities, and walking in the very courses, of which 
God has declared that the " end is death," Satan tells them that 
they shall not die ; and he teaches them " while they hear the words 
of God's curse, to bless themselves in their hearts, saying, I shall 
have peace, though I walk in the imagination of my heart.'' Do we 
not perceive a striking resemblance between the labors of certain 
classes of errorists and those of the deceiver of mankind ? What I 
propose on the present occasion, is to consider some of the modes 
of reasoning adopted by the objectors under consideration to sup- 
port the doctrine of universal salvation and overthrow that of endless 
punishment. But in doing this I feel no little embarrassment, for 
they appear to possess no uniformity of character. They are 
Restorationists, Destructionists, Rellyanists, moderate and ultra 
Universalists, Fatalists, Unitarians, Deists or Athiests, as will best 
serve their purpose, which is to get rid of the doctrine ol endless 
punishment. And they are followed by the impenitent multitude 
who seem to say, " Only tell us we shall all get to heaven ; only 
assure us there is no danger of that eternal fire, which we have 
been taught to dread and expect; and only prove it by denouncing 
the Orthodox, and talking much, in general terms, about the love of 
God, and all is well." And the methods by which they endeavor to 
get rid of the doctrine of endless punishment are as various and 
contradictory as their systems of religion or rather irreligion. Some 
profess to rely upon the atonement of Christ as securing the salva- 
tion of all men. Some expect to escape punishment through some 
opening made in the remissness of the divine government. Others 
rely upon the goodness of God. Others assert that all men are 
punished in the present life. Others hold that future punishment 
is disciplinary and limited. Others again build their hopes of future 
blessedness on the ground of fatalism ;. rather than admit the doc- 
trine of future punishment, they deny the guilt and demerit of sin. 



203 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect.9. 

tt All things," say they, " happen by an irresistable necessity, and 
therefore our actions which are denominated sinful are not deserving, 
of punishment, and consequently all men must be happy." And 
others again deny the conscious existence of the soul in a future 
state. 

Now it will not be expected that I should in one lecture follow 
these errorists through all their shifts and windings. It would be a 
task as unprofitable as it would be tedious. I shall therefore only 
notice some of the more popular and plausible arguments which are 
urged against the doctrine of endless punishment. And if these 
can be shown to be fallacious, you will not I trust rest upon those 
which are more evanescent, and display more of the subtlety of the 
deceiver who assured the first parents of our race that they should 
not surely die. 

1. Some rely upon the death of Christ as overthrowing the doctrine 
of endless punishment and securing the salvation of all men. They 
assert that Christ died for all, and consequently all will be saved; 
whether willing or unwilling, prepared or unprepared, they must be 
sayed. The death of Christ is an event that holds a most prominent 
place in the history of man's redemption. The sacred writers have 
interwoven it with the most interesting considerations and events. 
It is the centre and soul of the great system of grace revealed in 
the Bible. It is the common nucleus around which all the great 
truths of revealed religion cluster. 

But the expiatory sacrifice offered by our Saviour on Calvary is 
no where represented as securing the salvation of all or of any of 
mankind. The sufferings of Christ have no respect to commutative 
or to distributalive but to public justice. They did not satisfy com- 
mutative justice. Though Christ gave himself a ransom for all, and 
bought us with a price, yet man while under sin is a slave, a pris- 
oner, and a captive. In the death of Christ there was no exchange 
of benefits. It is not to be regarded in the light of a commercial 
transaction, where one commodity is exchanged for another. Nor 
did Christ by his death satisfy dislributative justice, since that respects 
personal character only, and consists in an equal distribution of 



Lect.9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 203 

rewards and punishments. It condemns men as sinners, and 
rewards them as righteous. Their moral character is the only 
ground on which moral justice respects them. But sin and holiness 
are personal, and cannot be transferred in reality, so as to render the 
subjects of them any more or less worthy. The death of Christ 
therefore did not constitute the sinner any more deserving of happi- 
ness or any less worthy of punishment. Sin is sin still. It is not 
justified, nor is the guilt of it lessened. The road to ruin and the 
gate are as broad as ever. If any man has sinned, it will always 
remain a truth that he has sinned ; and according to distributative 
justice he deserves punishment. But Christ did satisfy public jus- 
tice. His death exhibited the law and the transgression of it in 
such a light that no injury would accrue to the moral system, and 
no imputation would lie against the moral Governor of the universe, 
should he pardon the sinner and admit him to heaven, or should he 
leave him to die in his sins. Perfect justice is therefore done to the 
universe, though all the transgressors be not punished according to 
their personal demerit. 

Hence from the death of Christ nothing can be inferred as to the 
number that shall be finally saved. A way is made possible for 
the salvation of all men, and the penitent may be treated in a way 
of mercy. But the death of Christ, in itself considered, does not 
secure the salvation of any. Those who are saved, have their sal- 
vation secured on other grounds. The death of Christ avails only 
on the part of those who repent and believe the gospel. "He that 
believeth not the son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abid- 
eth on him." The death of Christ, so far from being the ground 
of salvation to all, will but aggravate the condemnation of many. 
" He that despised Moses' law, died without me?xy, — of how much 
6orer punishment, suppose ye shall be thought worthy, who hath 
trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of 
the covenant wherewith he (Christ) was sanctified an unholy thing, 
and hath done despite unto the spirit of grace ?" — (Heb. x : 28, 29.) 
A rejected ransom will secure the salvation of no one who rejects it. 
"He that believeth not shall be damned."— (Mark xvi: 16.) 



304 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect. 9. 

2. Others assert that the doctrine of endless punishment is incon- 
sistent with the goodness of God. Were it assumed that he who 
gave us existence, and bestowed upon us all things richly to enjoy, 
is a Being ef infinite goodness, it would be taking for granted only 
what all Christians allow. He is solely good, as all the goodness 
found in creatures is only an emanation of the divine goodness. He 
is the chief good, the sum and substance of all excellence. In him 
there is nothing but goodness, and nothing but goodness proceeds 
from him. He is infinitely good in himself, and his goodness shines 
through all his works. But what does this prove ? Does it prove 
that natural and moral evil cannot exist under the government of 
God, and that the subjects of his government must be holy and con- 
sequently happy forever? Are all the subjects of the divine gov- 
ernment now perfectly holy and happy ? Has not sin existed on 
earth for nearly six thousand years, and have not sorrow, sickness, 
pain and death been the unenviable but certain lot of the whole 
human family ? The inheritance of affliction, is assure as the laws 
which regulate the motion of the planets ; for " man is born to 
trouble, as the sparks fly upward." And is not all this perfectly 
consistent with the goodness of God ? No one will, I presume* 
impeach his goodness in permitting the introduction and continu 
ance of natural and moral evil. 

How then do you know that sin and punishment may not exist in 
a future world, and that their existence may not be perfectly con- 
sistent with the goodness of God? This, those who profess to 
believe in a limited punishment after death, acknowledge. How 
then do they know that endless punishment may not bo equally 
consistent with the goodness of God ? If it is consistent with the 
Divine benevolence to punish sinners for a year, an age^ or for ages 
of ages, why may it not be consistent also with the same benevo- 
lence that they should be punished forever? Wicked men often 
endure a great amount of suffering in the present life. They not 
only ^suffer those evils which are the common lot of man, but as 
transgressors of the divine law their way is hard. They seek riches 
and find poverty ; honor, and find shame and contempt ; happiness, 



Lect.9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 205 

and find misery. Why then may they not endure sufferings in the 
life to come ? Do you say, temporal sufferings may be so overruled 
as to promote the general good of the universe ? And why may 
not eternal misery? The scriptures assure us that the punishment 
of the finally impenitent and incorrigible is appointed expressly for 
an example to the rest of creation. It is never represented as 
being inflicted upon them by a being of almighty power merely to 
show his power over the vanquished, nor with such kind of wrath 
as bears no relation to the general good. God does not punish be- 
cause he delights in the misery of his creatures, but because , in 
many cases, punishment is rendered absolutely necessary in order 
that the permanency of his government should be maintained. 
This government as -we have seen,* is not a government of arbi- 
trary power, but a government of law. Now if law be the basis of 
the merciful administration of God, then the character and destiny 
of moral agents must be determined according to their conformity 
or non-conformity to this law. Is it inconsistent with a supreme 
magistrate as benevolent and good, to doom certain persons to death? 
Is it not rather an act of his benevolence ? Should a person guilty 
of high treason persuade himself and his accomplices in crime that 
His Excellency could not consent to their execution without ceas- 
ing to be that lovely and good character for which he had been 
famed, would not his reasoning be considered unsound? And as 
punishment inflicted on the transgressor of any statute law, is in 
perfect accordance with the strictest goodness in the constituted 
authorities, so is the endless punishment of the Hno.]}y impenitent 
with the goodness of God. 

Further; if the goodness of God proves the future holiness and 
happiness of all men, does it not equally prove their present holiness 
and happiness ? If sin and misery must come to an end because 
they are contrary to the divine benevolence, why ought they not to 
be now at an end ? I apprehend it would be as easy to prove that 
the present existence of sin and misery is as contrary to the] divine 
benevolence as their future existence. This argument drawn from 

* Lecture ir. 

rt 



206 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect. 9, 

the goodness of God, proves nothing, to the point, unless it can be 
shown that sin and misery do not now exist. And will any one 
assert this ? We have the awful testimony of scripture, experience 
and observation, to prove that all mankind are now far from being 
either holy or happy. 

3. But it is said that endless punishment is inconsistent with the 
justice of our deserts. Who among men, I would ask, are qualified 
to decide this point? Are we not too much infected with sin, and 
is not our judgment too much biased by a depraved heart, to. be 
suitable judges of the guilt and demerit of sin ? We are too much 
disposed to make our feelings and our sympathies the standard of 
truth, to be suitable judges in this case. There are but few children 
who would not think their parents unmerciful to chastise them. 
And there is scarcely a thief or murderer who would not think the 
law severe and the judge cruel, if they should give and execute 
against them the sentence of death. But would a company of 
criminals be deemed proper judges of the equity of that law which 
condemns them ? And does any human being know enough of the 
government of God and of the evil of sin, to determine what laws he 
should enact and what penalties he should annex to them ? This 
consideration is sufficient to set aside all objections that are urged 
against the doctrine of endless punishment on the ground of its 
being unjust. Of this we are incompetent judges. Here our only 
source of evidence is the word of God. The fact of future punish- 
ment and its duration are purely matters of revelation. God has 
spoken explicitly respecting them, and it is our duty to hear and 
believe what he has said, and not to attempt to be wise above what 
is written. 

But may not the endless punishment of the wicked be perfectly 
consistent with the justice of our deserts ? May not such a punish- 
ment inflicted on the sinner dying in impenitence, be a treatment 
of him by his Judge correspondent to his moral conduct and personal 
character ? A just punishment is that which is proportioned to the 
crime punished ; and it may be said to be thus proportioned when 
by the degree and duration of the punishment is exhibited a just 



LtcT.9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 207 

idea of the moral evil or vicious tendency of the crime, and a proper 
motive to restrain all intelligent beings from the commission of it. 
Now we have estimated the evil of sin against God. We have seen 
that it is an infinite evil, because it is committed against a being of 
infinite excellence ; it is the transgression of an infinite law, and 
has a tendency to produce mischief of infinite extent in the universe 
of God. What then does the sinner deserve ? The fact that God 
by his overruling and restraining providence has prevented sin from 
producing its full effect, does not diminish the guilt of the transgres- 
sor. The nature of sin is not changed nor its guilt removed. 
Sinners are just as criminal as if their sins actually produced all the 
evils to which they tend. Such being the nature and tendency of 
sin, it deserves an infinite punishment; for such a punishment is no 
more than proportionate to its demerit. If the transgression be 
infinite and the punishment be infinite, it is manifest that endless 
punishment is no more than what sin deserves. Therefore it is 
just, which was the thing to be proved. 

Remember, dear hearers, by what rule you estimate the evil of a 
crime against an inferior, an equal, a parent, and a chief magistrate 
of a nation; then consider the greatness, the majesty, and the glory 
of the infinite Jehovah, until you feel that he is unsearchable in all 
his perfections and attributes ; and after this say, as in his presence, 
do not your sins justly expose you to endless punishment? With 
a clear view of the holiness and justice of that Being against whom 
you have sinned, can you put your hand upon the Bible and say, 
"O God thou wouldst be unjust to inflict endless punishment upon 
me;' Would not your reason and conscience as well as the sacred 
scriptures condemn you for such atheistic impiety, and cause you to 
tremble lest divine vengeance should justly award you with that 
punishment which you impiously declared to be unjust? 

4. The doctrine of endless punishment is said to be derogatory to 
the character of God, because it proves that God is unable to save all 
mankind, or he is unwilling. "If you say he is able and not willing, 
you impeach his goodness; — if you say he is willing but not able, 
you deny his omnipotence." This argument if it proves any thing, 



508 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect.& 






it proves too much. If it be pursued it will run into absurdities 
and contradict plain matters of fact. It lies equally strong against 
limited punishment hereafter, and even against suffering in this life. 
The sufferings of this life are proverbial. Now, either God is una- 
ble to prevent these sufferings, or he is unwilling. If you say he is 
unable, you deny his omnipotence. But if you acknowledge his 
power and yet say he is unwilling, you impeach his goodness. Is it 
replied, " There is more propriety in temporary sufferings than in 
eternal misery ?" Not if temporary suffering is unnecessary. " But 
a portion of misery is necessary in order that you may know how to 
prize and enjoy happiness. For much of our relish of happiness is 
by comparing it with pain, with which we may have been experi- 
mentally acquainted." If it be true that a portion of misery is 
necessary in order that man may know how to prize and relish hap- 
piness, it follows that he must commit sin to augment his happiness. 
An excellent argument to deter the wicked from transgression 1 
And can God give us this relish of happiness in no other way? 
Must there be some pain in order that there may be a good deal of 
pleasure? Surely God must be deficient both in wisdom and in 
power if he could devise no other system by which to give his crea- 
tures a relish for happiness, but such an one as involves so much 
temporal suffering. " But the miseries of the present life are bless- 
ings to those who suffer them.' 7 Was the drowning of Pharaoh 
represented as a blessing to him? Was the overthrow of Sodom 
and the other cities of the plain, represented as a blessing to them? 
Was the deluge a blessing to the old world ? Was the destruction 
of Jerusalem represented as a blessing to the wicked Jews who 
crucified their Lord and King ? The miseries of this life are no 
where represented as being blessings to the wicked. " All things," 
it is true, " work together for good," but this is confined solely to 
those " who love God, and who are the called according to his pur- 
pose." But if the miseries of the present life are designed as a 
salutary discipline for the reformation of the wicked, why are they 
not reformed ? Why does not the wretchedness and the misery of 
the drunkard reform him ? Is it not a fact that the wicked instead 



Lect.9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 209 

of being reformed by their own sin and by consequence of suffering, 
wax worse and worse ? Does not the commission of sin go to 
destroy the principle of resistance, to blind the understanding, and 
harden the heart, and thus to prepare the way for the commission 
of other sins ? 

5. It is argued that endless punishment confounds all degrees of 
punishment, by giving infinite punishment to all. But we do not con- 
tend that every sin deserves an infinite degree of endless punish- 
ment. The degree of punishment that sin deserves, it becomes us 
to leave to God, who alone can determine it. Does the doctrine of 
endless punishment determine the degree of misery which sin de- 
serves? Can there be no diversity of suffering, unless it be in du- 
ration? Will all endure the same degree of sufferings, whose pun- 
ishment is endless ? How grossly absurd the idea of future 
punishment to admit such a notion ! There is sufficient evidence 
to believe that there will be different degrees of glory in heaven, 
proportioned to works of piety in the present life. As the labors 
and sufferings of the presentlife, in behalf of Christ, bear a relation 
to heavenly blessedness ; those being diverse of this must also be 
the same. The doctrine of rewards in heaven is both reasonable 
and scriptural. Though salvation be all of grace, rewards contain 
nothing inconsistent with it ; because those very works, which it 
pleases God to honor, are the real effects of his own operation, and 
have respect to the mediation of his Son. And in connecting re- 
wards with the obedience of his people, God shows not only his 
love to Christ and to them, but his regard to righteousness. Hence 
it is reasonable, as well as scriptural, to suppose that there will be 
different degrees of glory. But if the objection we are consider- 
ing, be true, there can be no diversity, unless it be in duration. 
Hence, all degrees of happiness are confounded ; for God must 
give an infinite degree of happiness to all his saints, since if it be 
without end it must be infinite in degree. Thus the objection, if it 
prove any thing, proves too mach. The truth is, there will be dif- 
ferent degrees of happiness in the future world. As every saint 
}s rewarded according to his works, and as some are more distil 



a 



210 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect.9. 

guished for piety and good works their rewards will be greater i-n 
proportion. By the same rule, as the sins of some are of a deeper 
die and of a more aggravated nature than others, we must conclude. 
as all will be rewarded according to their works, that punishment 
in the future life will be different in degree, though it be invariably 
endless in duration. 

6. It is argued that God induces all good men to pray for the sal- 
vation of all men, which he could not do if it were opposed to his will ? 
and that " if wz ask any thing according to his loill, he heareth us" 
and that " the desire ofihz righteous shall he granted." Consequently 
all men will he saved. This argument is far from being conclusive. 
If God never wills that to take place for the general good which 
is not in itself desirable, then every thing which does^ take place* 
even sin in all its forms and results, is just what is in itself and in 
every way desirable to him. He is then well pleased with all the 
sin and misery there are in the world, The wicked are not an 
abomination in his sight. And he is as well pleased with the acts 
of Satan as he is with those of Gabriel. God has no where com- 
manded his people to pray for the final salvation of ail men. We 
are commanded to pray for all men, for kings and for all in author- 
ity, that we may lead quiet and peaceable lives in all godliness and 
honesty. But does it follow that all men, kings, and all in authority 
are just what we pray they may be ? Is the argument varied, and 
is it said " God will hear and answer the prayers of his people ; they 
pray for the salvation of all men: hence all must be saved?" God 
has no where said that he will hear and answer every prayer that is 
offered. Says James, " ye ask and receive not, because ye ask 
amiss ;" and God says, " though ye make many prayers, yet will I 
not hear you." We have no promise of any answer to our prayers 
unless they are offered in faith. If offered in faith, God will hear 
and answer. "All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, helicv- 
ing, ye shall receive." " Whatsoever things ye desire, when ye 
pray helieve that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." Now 
that all or any of the people of God pray in faith for the salvation 
of all men, remains to be proved. Is all prayer the prayer of faith ? 



Lect. 9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 211 

Do not the people of God often pray for things that they do not re- 
ceive ? In order that prayer be offered in faith, it must be founded 
on the oath and promise of God, and accord with the intercession 
of Christ. God will hear and answer the intercession of his Son. 
And this is for his immediate disciples and for all thuse who shall 
believe on him through their w r ord. If Christians pray in faith for 
the final salvation of all for w T hom Christ intercedes, their prayers 
will be answered. They cannot pray in faith for the salvation of 
others, because their faith will then cease to he faith ; it will be 
presumption, because it is not founded upon the promises of the 
scriptures. 

7. It is argued that " if God created mankind and placed ihem in 
this state of being, under circumstances which he certainly foreknew 
would issue in their fall and ruin ; he willed this their fall and ruin ; 
and thai it is of no importance thai he forewarned, ihem to avoid the 
evil: "whatever be the event, he is chargeable wiihil. But God hath 
sworn by himself that he ivilleih not the death of the sinner ; thai is, he 
willeth it not as death eternal. If therefore it occur, it is a part of 
his economy of grace, and finally a minisiraiio7i unto life! 9 * Let us 
examine this argument. 

It is true that God is the supreme moral Governor of the universe, 

who does all his pleasure in the armies of heaven, and among the in- 

habitants of the earth ; and whatever exists must, in a certain sense, 

accord with his will. But he willeth not evil, however, as evil, but 

* " To say that it is not God's decree, but man's sin which renders him mis- 
erable forever, is trifling in the extreme ; for since God is his Creator, he must 
be the Author of that nature which he brings with him into i!ie worJd — so if he 
is utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all that is spiri ually good, 
and wholly inclined to all evil and that continually, it is such in consequence of 
his Creator having been pleased to make him so. The circumstances in which 
mankind are. placed are likewise entirely God's appointment. He is the Author 
of their n:iture, such as it is, when they commence the career of life, and of 
the circumstances which call their propensities into action; both ihe nature and 
the c. •curnstances are such that the ultimate result could net possibly be other- 
wise than it is. He wills the propensity ; he wills the means ; and he so adapt* 
the means to the propensity, and the propensity to the mean:-, as to secure the 
end ; and to affirm, therefore, that he does not will the end, \< utterly absurd." 

Smith ok the Divide Government. 



212 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect. 9, 

for wise ends permits it to exist. The good and not the evil that 
shall arise is properly the object of the divine volition. But it is 
not true that God on this account is chargeable with man's sin ; 
and that he willed his fall and ruin ; and that all his cautions and 
warnings are of no account ; and that if the sinner suffer eternal 
death, he is chargeable with this death of the sinner. 

Is it not a fact that God created man and placed him in circum- 
stances which he most certainly foreknew would issue in his fall, 
and that he did notwithstanding caution and warn him against apos- 
tacy ; and does he not still continue to caution and warn sinners 
against the commission of those very sins which he foreknows they 
will commit ? Who then will, with atheistic impiety, dare to ar- 
raign the conduct of their Maker, and accuse him of insincerity ? 
Who will deny the accountability of man, and accuse God of being 
accountable for all the evil there is in the universe? 

If this be true, it must follow that man is not to blame for all his 
rebellion against his Maker, nor justly accountable for any of its 
results. Sin and all its consequences, are, by this hypothesis trans- 
ferred from the sinner to the Creator. " It is God, who, knowing 
all events and placing us in such circumstances as he does, that is 
accountable. And it is of no account that he forewarns us of the 
evil." "God sent us into the world with sinful dispositions which 
we cannot remove. He gave us a law which it is impossible for us 
to obey. Hence he would be unjust in condemning us to eternal 
punishment for not obeying " the law which knows that we cannot 
obey." Impious reasoning! 

But what is the testimony of scripture on this point ? " Let no 
man say when he is tempted, lam tempted of God, for God cannot 
be tempted to evil, neither tempteth he any man ; but every man is 
tempted when he is drawn away of his own lusts and enticed ; then, 
when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and sin when it 
is finished bringeth forth death." — (lames i: 13— J 5.) 

Would the individual who had wholesome food provided for him 
in abundance, which he refused to eat, be able to blame any one but 
himself because he was famishing? Would the individual who 



Lsct. 9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 213 

voluntarily took poison, be just in throwing the blame on God for 
not preventing his wicked design ? And will sinful man blame God 
for that which is his own fault ? 

The doctrine of necessity and the evil actions of men being in 
accordance with the will of God, is utterly subversive of the doc- 
trine of repentance. All men are commanded to repent. But does 
God command his creatures to repent for having done his will? 
This represents God as being at variance with himself! He con- 
vinces us by his spirit that we are wrong for doing actions that are 
in accordance with his will, and then he produces sorrow in our 
hearts for having done these actions. But how can w r e be sorry for 
an action that is not contrary to the will of God ? I cannot see how 
a person can repent while he believes that his actions are in perfect 
accordance with the will of God. 

This doctrine is equally at variance with the doctrine of forgive- 
ness. What need has he to be forgiven who has never resisted the 
will of God ? Where there is nothing done in opposition to the 
will of God, there can be no blame ; and where there is no blame it 
is an insult to talk of forgiveness, or of the need of a Mediator to 
effect a reconciliation. On this ground the whole doctrine of for- 
giveness and condemnation is a mere farce. But if, as we know, 
the doctrine of forgiveness is a doctrine of the Bible, then it follows 
that this doctrine of necessity is a gross delusion of the devil ; a 
false light which he erects to decoy the voyagers to eternity upon 
rocks and treacherous quicksands. This sentiment is full of blas- 
phemy. With one stroke it sweeps away the justice of all punish- 
ment, and subverts the whole foundation of gospel grace. 

Let those who have advocated this sentiment of necessity, consider 
how they will be able to roll away this reproach which they have 
the temerity to charge to their Creator by throwing all the blame 
of their sinful actions upon him ! 

It is not true that man is not able to do his duty and cannot 
deserve eternal punishment. If this were the case, then it would 
follow of course that all the blame of man's sins would be trans- 
ferred from him to his Creator. But man is not a machine. He is 



214 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect.9. 

a free moral agent. And his inability is not physical but moral. 
It may be thus illustrated. You go to a person indolently reposing 
upon Ins downy couch, and ask him to arise and walk with you to a 
certain place. You hold out to him every proper inducement neces- 
sary for him to comply. But he says, " I am not able.* By this he 
means that he does not choose to accompany you. This is the 
inability of the sinner. He does not obey the commands of God 
because he chooses to disobey them. This inability so far from 
rendering him in the least excusable, is his sin. And will the sin- 
ner dare reproach his Maker, and charge him wkh his voluntary 
actions for which he alone is accountable and punishable ? 

8. Some argue that, God can and does produce holiness at the last 
moments of the earthly existence of all those sinners ivho were not 
made holy before, in the ivay of repentance, faith, and obedience to the 
gospel. But who can believe that the great Jehovah would com- 
mand repentance, faith and obedience, upon pain of damnation, and 
then in case any of his creatures should choose to live in disobedi- 
ence, hold himself bound to produce holiness in them at the last 
moment of their lives, and save them from the wrath to come? It 
would defeat all the threatnings of his law. Nor is this all. It 
would prove that his threatnings are falsehoods held out to deceive 
his creatures. In this case they could not have been given with a 
sincere intention. And what effect will the disclosure of this senti- 
ment be likely to produce on the sinner? Will it inspire reverence 
and godly fear? Will it not rather produce infidelity and an utter 
contempt of both the law and the gospel. 

I do not deny that God may produce holiness in the sinner at the 
last moment. But this will not be done in those who do not put 
forth the least desire or effort towards it. Moral holiness cannot be 
produced in this way. Man is an intelligent being and a free agent, 
and God deals, with him as such. Repentance and ftith are essen- 
tial branches of Christian holiness, and necessarily imply a convic- 
tion of sin, sorrow for it, and the yielding of the heart to God. 

What shall we say then of those, who being near the borders of 
the grave, are unwilling to hear serious discourse and fervent prayers, 



Lect. 9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 215 

and any thing said about a preparation for death ? Here, to say 
the least, repentance is extremely doubtful. 

What shall we say of the countless multitudes of impenitent 
sinners who in every age and land, being suddenly deprived of 
reason, die in a state of mental derangement ? The act of repent- 
ance and faith is the work of a right mind ; if there be therefore 
such a thing as an impenitent sinner dying without reason, that 
sinner dies without faith and repentance. 

What shall we say of those incorrigible sinners who have been 
cut off by the judgments of God! Did they all repent, or were 
they saved without repentance ? 

What shall we say of the man who returns from the revels of 
Bacchus and dies in a state so far intoxicated that he has no power 
over himself! Was he made holy and taken to heaven while he 
was drunk ? 

What shall we say of those unhappy beings who having contemn- 
ed the Saviour, despised the gospel, and in the last moments being 
filled with despair and enmity against God, die dreadfully blasphe- 
ming his name, like Altamont and the once honorable Francis 
Newport! They die without repentance and apparently forsaken 
of God. 

What shall we say then of those who commit murder and then 
deliberately add to this crime that of suicide ! Does God interpose 
for those bloody men, and contrary to the only way revealed in the 
gospel for the salvation of sinners, fit them for heaven without 
repentance ? Our Saviour tells us of some who shall die in their 
sin?. Can they die in their sins and at the same time be saved 
from them ? If so, how can they die in their sins and in the last 
moment be saved from them ? And where is the proof that God 
will produce holiness in the sinner at the last moment? And how 
can he do this without changing the will and affections of the sin- 
ner? And what evidence, I ask again, is there that God will 
produce holiness at last in all who have broken his law and abused 
his goodness through life, and died in their sins? This argument 
assumes every thing and proves nothing! 



216 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect. 9. 

9. Some, with a view to invalidate the doctrine of endless punish- 
ment, assert that the principles of the Orthodox are selfish and revenge- 
ful. They charge them wi\h anticipating a high degree of satis- 
faction in looking down from heaven, and beholding the sufferings 
of their fellow-beings ; that they " expect to feast their eyes on 
the smoke and flame of their torment ;" that parents in heaven will 
rejoice in seeing their children in hell ; and that a great part of 
the happiness of heaven will result from seeing dear friends and 
near connections burning in the unquenchable flames of hell." 
Now this false and slanderous representation is one of the most 
successful means by which the unprincipled and vicious have been 
prejudiced against the doctrine of endless punishment, and in favor 
of universal salvation. Thus have the prejudice and rage of the 
wicked been awakened against the doctrines of the Bible. 

But can we charitably suppose that this work of deception is done 
through ignorance ? Have we not every reason to conclude that 
it originates from a malicious disposition ? No doubt the whole 
administration of God, when rightly understood, will receive the 
high approbation of all holy intelligences. They will rejoice in the 
righteous government of God when they see rebellious subjects of 
his kingdom shut up in prison, and prevented from doing further 
mischief. The inspired writers frequently express themselves in 
anthems of praise, when the enemies of truth and of holiness are 
punished ; not that they rejoice in the misery of any being, but that 
they rejoice in the wise and equitable government of the great Je- 
hovah. Thus Moses, Miriam and Josiah sang a song of praise to 
God when he had destroyed their enemies. And ere long the 
whole Church will sing the song of Moses and the Lamb, as tri- 
umphing over the fall of every anti-christian power ; and the Lord, 
shall reign forever and ever to the eternal joy of his people, and the 
eternal confusion of his enemies. In their everlasting destruction 
the saints will be called upon to ascribe salvation and glory and 
honor and power unto the Lord their God. 

Should a formidable conspiracy be raised against any good gov- 
ernment, would it not afford joy to all the loyal and peaceful subjects 



LieT.9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 217 

of that government should the constituted authorities send out 
their forces, quell the rebellion, and call the offenders to justice ? 
Suppose these good and loyal subjects, by the proclamation of their 
Governor, should celebrate a day of public thanksgiving to God in 
consequence of the overthrow of their enemies, would it not be false 
and unjust to charge them with selfish and revengeful feelings ? 

The same objection which is urged against the Orthodox may be 
urged against the principles and feelings of many of the saints re- 
corded in the scriptures of the Old and New Testament. But it 
maybe well for us to be careful how we judge of the principles and 
feelings of good men. 

30. With a view of disproving the doctrine of endless punishment, 
the objectors are very fond of appealing to the sympathies of our 
nature. " What man," it is asked, " of common sensibility, could 
endure to see a fellow man tormented in the fire, or with devouring 
worms, for one year, or one month, or one day ? What parent could 
take its own child and cast it into a furnace of fire, or confine it in a 
gloomy dungeon during its life ? Would he if he were able punish 
it with endless misery, or inflict upon it intolerable anguish for a 
very protracted period ? If a human parent who acted in this man- 
ner should be rewarded with universal execration, who can believe 
any hypothesis which attributes such conduct to the benevolent 
Father of men ? God has more goodness than man, and more love 
than any earthly parent. How then can it be supposed that he will 
cast any of his children into the lake of fire and consume them 
forever ?" 

This is a very favorite argument with many, and one vdrich they 
wield with great success over young and unthinking minds. But in 
reply it might be asked, what parent could drown his children in 
the ocean, or consume them in the fire ; or leave them to perish with 
hunger ? What parent could break their bones, or mangle their 
flesh, or send them pain, sickness and death? And yet God, the 
great Parent of all, brings all these things upon the children of men 
in the course of his providence. Has he then less kindness and love 
than earthly parents ? This would follow according to the^hypoth- 
s 



218 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect. 9, 

esis we are now opposing. According to this principle Noah would 
not have expected the deluge, though warned of it by God himself 
and commanded to prepare for it. He would have said, " Are not 
all these human beings the children of God, the objects of his love 
and mercy, and can it be supposed that he intends to destroy them ? 
True they have corrupted their way before God, but for this they 
are not to blame. They are just what their Creator made them to 
be. If they are sinners exceedingly, would it not be far better that 
they should be converted and rendered completely happy than to be 
destroyed ?" So Noah would have reasoned had he believed in the 
doctrine of universal salvation. And so did the inhabitants of the 
old world in all probability reason, when warned of threatened and 
impending judgment. They did not believe that they should be 
destroyed ; but the deluge came and swept them away. 

Reasoning on this principle, Lot would not have believed the 
message of those celestial beings who came to announce the 
destruction of Sodom. " Is not God," he would have said, " the 
Parent of these Sodomites, and is it possible that he should destroy 
them with fire enraged with brimstone ? Who of all these parents 
could be so cruel as to design such evil against their tender off- 
spring ? And is not God, the Parent of all, more merciful than 
they? True these heavenly messengers have announced that the 
Lord will destroy this place with fire from heaven ; and they appear 
to be sincere and to give lucid evidence that they are sent by God 
to announce this judgment. But their language cannot be under- 
stood in its literal import ; it must have a figurative meaning. God 
is merciful, and he will not be so cruel as to bring such a judgment 
upon this place. This fire which he threatens, must signify the fire 
of his love." So Lot would have reasoned had he been a Univer- 
salist, and so did reason the inhabitants of Sodom. But the fire 
from heaven did descend at the appointed hour notwithstanding, and 
destroyed them all. But if Lot did expect this judgment to be a 
merciful chastisement designed for the good of the Sodomites, why 
did he warn and intreat his sons-in-law to escape from the city, and 
assign as his reason that the Lord would destroy that place ? This 



Lect.9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 219 

would be defeating the very object of that salutary discipline under 
which they were to be placed. You see then, my hearers, how 
absurd the arguments drawn from the sympathies of our nature 
against the doctrine of endless punishment The argument drawn 
from the circumstance that endless punishment is abhorrent to their 
feelings, and that God will not inflict it, lies as we have seen equally 
against the sufferings of this world and against matter of fact, and 
therefore it cannot be sound. The truth is, on this subject and all 
others, feelings must all yield to matter of fact, and to actual expe- 
rience. Whatever is, is truth, and whatever contradicts it is 
falsehood. 

11. It is said that the proper meaning of the term Gospel is glad 
tidings, and it is glad tidings to all men. But if only a select number 
are to enjoy its benefits, how can it be glad tidings to all ? It can 
certainly be no favor, no matter of joy to those who are finally lost 
In reply to this argument, I would enquire is it necessary in order 
to impart value to a favor, that it be actually received ? Did the 
man in the parable who made a splendid feast and bade many, 
manifest no kindness to those who rejected his invitations? Sup- 
pose a hundred criminals under sentence of death and waiting 
their execution, would it be no favor to them if the chief magistrate 
should order the doors of their prison to be set open and a full and 
free pardon to be offered to them, on condition of their confessing 
their guilt and promising amendment, unless all should accept his 
offer ? Would not the offer in itself be glad tidings, even if they 
should all reject it, and die in prison or be led forth to execution? 
Are not the tidings of an infallible remedy for a disease with which 
we may be afflicted good tidings, whether we regard them or not ? 
And are not the tidings just as good if we neglect them and dra 
through our neglect, as if we obtain the remedy and thereby secure 
a restoration to health? The invitation of the gospel is full and 
free. None are excluded from the offers of mercy who do not 
exclude themselves. All who will may accept them, and this is all 
that is necessary in order to render the gospel glad tidings. 
Whether it be received or rejected does not in the least alter its 



220 ON THE ARGUMENTS (Lect.9,- 

uature and design. It does not cease to be glad tidings by being 
perverted, abased, and rejected to our ruin. 

12. It is said men receive in this world all the punishment they 
deserve^ and therefore cannot be justly punished beyond this life. This 
argument we have already noticed,* but it may be expedient and 
proper to give it a further examination. This argument takes for 
granted that wicked men are punished in the present life according 
to the guilt and demerit of their sins. 

But this is false in fact. Admit if you please that the more 
aggravated crimes are usually followed by something like a speedy 
retribution ; what punishment, let me ask, do they endure who con- 
temn God, who are unjust, cruel, proud, selfish, avaricious and 
revengeful ? Do you say remorse of conscience ? The consciences 
of some are seared as with a hot iron, so as to be past feeling. 
What remorse of conscience has a West India pirate, a highway 
robber, or a nightly assassin. They do not feel half so much as a 
tender-hearted christian feels for neglecting family or secret devo- 
tions, or indulging in a worldly minded spirit for a single day. 
The truth is, the more wicked a man is, the less he suffers from 
remorse of conscience, so that if this be the appointed punishment 
of the wicked, the more sinful they are the less punishment they 
will have to endure. Let such a sentiment be exhibited, and will it 
deter men from the commission of sin? 

This doctrine is impossible in the very nature of things. If the 
sinner must suffer the whole punishment of his sins, must bear 
the^whole weight of his transgressions, how can he receive all 
his punishment in this life ? How can that man who commits sui- 
cide, and by that sin passes beyond the boundaries of time into 
eternity, suffer the punishment of his sins ? He commits one of 
the greatest crimes, and yet does not remain a moment in the world 
to suffer for it. Hence he must suffer in a future state, as he does 
not remain a moment after his crime to suffer in this. 

This doctrine is contrary to scripture. The general course of 
Providence is accurately described in the words of our Saviour. 
* Lecture v. 



Lect. 9.) AGAINST ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. 221 

u He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth 
his rain on the just and on the unjust." That God will reward ev- 
ery man according to the deeds done in his body, is the concurrent 
testimony of the Bible. Now as facts prove that some men are 
more wicked than others, it must also be proved that the wicked suf- 
fer more in this life than the righteous, and that the more wicked a 
man is the more he must suffer. This has never been done. The 
language of scripture as well as the universal experience and ob- 
servation of mankind bear testimony to the contrary. Consequently 
this doctrine under consideration is contrary to scripture. 

If men are punished in the present life according to their deserts, 
then the scheme which advocates the salvation of all men is false. 
For this goes to prove that all men are saved. But from what are 
they saved ? They are saved from nothing if they endure the whole 
penalty of the law. It is absurd to talk of salvation after men have 
received all the punishment due to their offences and thereby fully 
satisfied the claims of divine justice. Full punishment and free 
salvation are totally inconsistent with each other. Now if you as- 
sert that all are punished according to their deserts, then none are 
saved. But if you say all are saved, then none are punished as they 
deserve. I am not unaware of the evasion of some respecting the 
meaning of the term salvation. They would persuade us that it is 
deliverance from the dominion only and not from the guilt of sin. 
But does this idea accord with scripture. Does that explain salva- 
tion to mean simply the deliverance from the power of sin. Is all 
that it says of pardon, forgiveness, and remission of sin, without 
meaning? Is not pardon a deliverance from the punishment of sin, 
and remission a release from the penalty of the divine law ? To 
explain these terms, then, to denote only freedom from the power 
of sin, furnishes an example of the facility with which some can 
wrest the scriptures, and perverts the plainest words of the lan- 
guage. 

These arguments I have thus briefly noticed, are, I believe, the 
strongest and most plausible that are adduced by the objectors to 
endless punishment, against that doctrine and in favor of the final 
s* 



222 ON THE ARGUMENTS, &c. (Lect. & 

salvation of all men. Whether they have been fairly met and ans- 
wered in this discourse, I leave it with the judgment of the serious 
and candid to decide. To me it appears that the arguments which 
I have noticed, are altogether fallacious, built upon unfounded as- 
sumptions, and perverted inferences ; and that they are not sup- 
ported by a single text of scripture. If others think otherwise, I 
hope they will investigate the subject with candor. As truth is 
important, and the result of our investigations may carry with them 
eternal consequences, let us seek the truth with candor and prayer 
and embrace it with joy, that we may be saved by its influence. 






liECTUSE X, 
ON THE SOURCES, THE EVIL NATURE, AND THE DAN- 

GEROUS MORAL CONSEQUENCES OF A SCHEME, WHICH DENIES 
THE DOCTRINE OF ENDLESS PUNISHMENT, AND ADVO- 
CATES THE FINAL SALVATION OF ALL MEN. 

Proverbs xix : 27. — " Cease, my son, to hear the instruction which 
causeih to err from the words of knowledge" 

Principles are not objects of speculation merely ; they are the 
foundation and frame-work of character. They are the main-springs 
of purpose and action, and enter into the essence of all we do- 
Moral beings are in this life, and in that which is to come, just what 
they are in principle. " As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." 
And as principles are the immediate and chief objects of God's 
cognizance in moral being, so they form the principal ground of 
acquittal or condemnation at his righteous tribunal. Good principles 
are the primary elements of a good character. It is, therefore, just 
as important that we should adopt correct principles, as it is, that 
we should here sustain a character morally good, and hereafter en- 
joy the presence and favor of Almighty God. 

The scriptures are very full and explicit, in representations cf the 
unholy and destructive influence of erroneous principles. They 
represent them as increasing unto more ungodliness, and eating as 
doth a gangrene. They are fruitful and productive; and on this 
account they are the more dangerous. They will destroy the soul 
as a gangrene destroys the body. Let a system of false opinions^ 
in respect to religion, oDce get possession of any mind, and what 



224 SOURCES OF MODERN (Lect. 10. 

can you expect to emanate from this poisonous fountain but the 
bitter streams of pollution and death? Hence it is that those evil 
men, who corrupt the morals of our youth, begin their work of death 
by assailing their religious principles. In this they act with keen 
discernment of what constitutes the strength and safety of a virtu- 
ous character — correct moral principles. It is in reference to efforts 
like these, that the wise man gives the advice contained in our text: 
" Cease, my son, to hear the instruction which causeth to err from 
the words of knowledge." Those persons whose minds are not 
firmly established in the truth, by listening to the instruction which 
causeth to err from the words of knowledge, are liable to be led 
away with the error of the wicked. Familiarity with error, as with 
vice, has a tendency to make us insensible of its deformity ; and 
those, who are comparatively unacquainted with the word of God, 
are not properly furnished for an encounter with error. 

Under the fullest conviction, that what has been said of error in 
general, is applicable to that scheme which denies the doctrine of 
endless punishment and advocates the final salvation of all men, we 
would, in the most serious and affectionate manner, lift our warning 
voice against it. In doing this, we shall notice its sources ; its 

NATURE ; AND ITS DANGEROUS MORAL CONSEQUENCES ; which if 

clearly ascertained, will be so many presumptive proofs of the fal- 
lacy of its principle, a persuasive to its abettors to give up a scheme 
that is based on error, and supported by a perversion of the sacred 
scriptures, and a loud dissuasive to all from listening to their in^ 
structions, and embracing a religious belief that is fraught with the 
most pernicious and fatal consequences. 

Sources of Modern Universalisbi. 
•I. Let us then in the first place inquire into some of the causes 
which incline the minds of men to reject the doctrine of future retribu- 
tions, and to embrace the doctrine of universal salvation. That the 
cause cannot be traced to any firm and satisfactory evidence of 
truth, may be seen from the indefinite manner in which the doctrine 
is held, and from the confusion and shifting of the arguments by 



Lect.10.) UNIVERSALISM. 225 

which it is defended. One point is assumed, and it is this and this 
alone which characterizes the doctrine, viz : that all men will ulti- 
mately he made perfectly holy and happy. But as to the time when r 
and the means by which this is to be effected, the advocates of this 
scheme are not agreed. Some think that all men will be happy 
like the angels in heaven the moment they enter the next conscious 
existence, and that no distinctions will exist among mankind beyond 
the grave. Others suppose that there will be a period of punish- 
ment indefinitely long beyond the grave, which will terminate in 
the reformation and consequent happiness of all the wicked. 

Nor is there a greater uniformity as it respects the manner of 
salvation. Some expect to be saved through the infinite merits of 
Christ ; and thus they yield the position as untenable, that mankind 
will be saved by enduring the whole penalty of the law. Some 
suppose that it would not consist with the benevolence of God to 
inflict eternal punishment for the sins committed in this life. Oth- 
ers will tell us that endless punishment is inconsistent with our 
deserts. Some expect that irresistible grace will draw all men to 
heaven; and others, that irresistible justice will drive all men 
there. Some expect to be purified by the blood of Christ without a 
change of heart in the present life, and others to be purified by the 
flames of hell. One is expecting salvation by the fogiveness of sin, 
and another by suffering the whole penalty of the law. 

And the main arguments by which not only different persons, but 
the same persons at different times, defend their system, are as vari- 
ous and contradictory as their system itself. Now the conclusion 
to which all this brings us is, that the doctrine in question does not 
rest in the perception of solid proof. We should have supposed that 
if this main point, universal salvation, was reached by a chain of 
evidences that led to it, all who have arrived at this conclusion 
would do it by a corresponding course. But as their arguments 
are various and contradictory, we conclude, and not without reason,, 
that the main position is first assumed without regard to proof. A 
system which in the hands of its advocates is constantly changing 
its form and resting upon some new foundation, must be rather the 



226 SOURCES OF MODERN (Lect.10, 

offspring of man's convenience and desire, than any firm and satis- 
factory evidence of truth obtained from an impartial study of the 
Bible. 

This is a disease of the mind which no reasoning can cure. All 
that can be attempted with any rational hope of success, is to point 
out some of the more obvious sources of this scheme, that its abet- 
tors may be induced to retrace their steps and to observe the mental 
process by which they arrived at their present conclusions, and to 
decide the question with some degree of candor and impartiality. 
We come then directly to the question: What are the causes 
which incline the minds of some men to reject the doctrine of end- 
less punishment and embrace that of universal salvation ? 

There are many at the present day, who are laboring to reason 
themselves out of all truth, both human and divine. They are 
making rapid advances in the cause of infidelity, And they em- 
ploy every method possible, to disprove the authenticity and divine 
inspiration of the holy scriptures, and to arrive at the certainty that 
all things are the result of chance, and consequently uncertain. 
They need not declare to the world their motives. Were they not 
rationally convinced that the Bible teaches the doctrine of a future 
state and of eternal rewards and punishments, they would not, lam 
persuaded, waste their energies to convince themselves and others 
that the Bible is a cunningly devised fable, and clamorously exult 
that he is a slave who fears to die, and that death is an eternal sleep. 
Let the doctrine of future retribution be expunged from the Bible, 
and every Infidel would exchange his " Age of Reason," and his 
;t Chesterfield," for this sacred volume. It is because they find an 
overwhelming evidence that the Bible teaches the doctrine of 
endless punishment that they renounce a book which bears a 
mighty impress of divinity, and which contains, as they acknowledge, 
the most excellent system of commands, precepts and institutions. 
But so painful are their apprehensions of a future state, and so strong 
are their fears that the Bible is the word of God, that they would re- 
joice to find it on their side to confirm their wavering hopes that all 
will be well should not death prove an eternal sleep. And this is 



Lect. 10.) UNIVERSALIS^. 227 

just what the scheme under consideration promises. It says to 
those who despise the Lord, " The Lord hath said ye shall have 
peace ;" and to every one who walks in the imagination of his heart 
it says, " No evil shall come upon you." Hence they renounce their 
barren infidelity and embrace this "blessed doctrine," 

This doctrine is in accordance with the depraved inclinations of 
the natural heart. It is a fact that men naturally love darkness 
rather than light. Of this fact, experience and observation furnish 
abundant proof. This fact is confirmed by the dictates of our en- 
lightened conscience, and the unequivocal declarations of Inspira- 
tion. Taking for granted then this fact, it amounts to nothing more 
or less than a predisposition in the natural heart to the reception of 
error. Now this natural aversion to truth is peculiarly favorable to 
the influence of error. Hence the reason why many embrace Uni- 
versalism. The sons of pleasure, who wish to indulge in every 
sinful gratification, and to procrastinate repentance or entirely dis- 
pense with it, here find a comfortable hope and a pleasing substi- 
tute for the humbling and purifying doctrines of the cross. It per- 
fectly coincides with the prevailing inclination of their hearts. Ev- 
ery man must see at once what an influence this predisposition of 
the mind in favor of an idea, must have upon the decisions of the 
understanding. It is familiar to every one with how much ease a 
man may convince himself of that which he wishes to be true. By 
dexterous sophistry, and all the arts of self-deception, he may make 
falsehood and vice appear to his own mind as truth and virtue. 
Now is there any doctrine, that a man, determined on a life of sin- 
ful indulgence, can have a greater wish to believe than this, that 
there ivill be no future retribution? Those who object to endless 
punishment assign as a reason why it should not be preached, that 
it occasions in the minds of many, a great amount of suffering. 
Consequently, if the minds of some men suffer so much, by enter- 
taining the idea of future misery as the fruit of a life of sin, is it at all 
strange, considering how much the decisions of the judgment are 
influenced by interest and desire, that some should come to per- 
suade themselves that there is no future retribution ? The human 



228 SOURCES OF MODERN (Lect. 10, 

heart loves to be soothed. The pleasing sound of peace, peace % will 
ever be gratefully received. 

A wicked life also is a fruitful source of the doctrine under con- 
sideration. It quiets the conscience and ministers to a life of sin. 
What the celebrated Earl of Rochester said of the Bible, is true of 
the doctrine of endless punishment. " A bad life is the only grand 
objection to it." Wicked and dissolute men have the strongest 
objection to the doctrine of future punishment, and the most power- 
ful bias of mind in favor of universal salvation. Is it not a fact that 
wicked and dissolute men are generally inclined to reject the doc- 
trine of endless punishment and embrace the opposite scheme ? 
The drunkard rejoices in it, and belches it out with the fumes of his 
-own feted breath. The libertine, the knave, the blasphemer, and sin- 
ners of every description, hail this scheme as good news of great 
joy to their unsanctified hearts. Thus a wicked life, by secret and 
unobserved influence, throws the mind under a bias towards the 
hope that all mankind will be ultimately saved. 

In this doctrine the wicked man finds all the ideas he had occa- 
sion for, to secure him from the fears of death and its consequences. 
His occasion for such ideas are as frequent as his wicked acts and 
his reflections upon them. Every admonition of conscience stirs up 
tumult and agony in his heart. The man who is determined to 
indulge in forbidden gratifications, must force the reproaches of his 
own conscience or screen himself behind the false refuge of Univer- 
sal ism. This proves to him a shield which the sharpest arrows of 
the Almighty can scarcely penetrate. He is at ease under the - 
preaching of the word, the warnings of providence, and revivals of 
religion. Hence he finds himself pledged to a universalist belief. 
He sees that the whole tenor of his life demands such a belief; and 
that if he does not restrain it, he must abandon without delay his 
wicked practices. But retaining it, he can live as he pleases 
without doing violence to his convictions. Thus the doctrine swells 
the number of its adherents by being a place of refuge to shield the < 
ungodly from the fears of divine punishment after death, and from 
the scorpion sting of an awakened conscience. 



Lect. 10.) UNIVERSALISM. 229 

I do not say that all who advocate universal salvation are disso- 
lute men. There may be many of correct morals. I affirm no fur- 
ther than that a wicked life fosters Universalism, and Universalism 
favors a wicked life. 

Again, Universalism sometimes settles into the mind during a 
period of religious excitement Many have indulged a speculative 
belief of a future state of rewards and punishments ; but they ex- 
pected that it would by some means or other be well with them at 
last. And so long as they were permitted to indulge this expecta- 
tion undisturbed, they rested easy. But when a faithful ministry, 
urged, upon their own acknowledged principles, the necessity of a 
change of heart and an actual preparation for heaven in the present 
life, and the danger of procrastination, and the awful consequences 
of unrepentant guilt, they found themselves exposed to the wrath 
of God, and have nothing to defend themselves against the arrows 
of conviction. They now saw that in practice they were not con- 
sistent with their professions. And they have been driven to the 
dire necessity either to get a new heart or a new doctrine. Some 
have to their exceeding great joy and to the joy of all holy beings 
repented of their sins and embraced the long neglected Saviour. 
But others saw that in the system which rejects endless punishment, 
there was a doctrine which exactly coincided with the prevailing 
inclination of their hearts ; a doctrine, which held out a " heaven 
for all and a hell for none. 33 This doctrine they eagerly embraced. 
And as their belief in it approached to assurance, their sense of se- 
curity in sin increased; and they wanted nothing else to quiet their 
1 fears of a future retribution. To this source is to be attributed the 
apparent prevalence of this doctrine. 1 say apparent ; for it existed 
in the heart before. It is a doctrine of the natural heart. But now 
it becomes more visible, systematic and formidable. In proportion 
I as the gospel is faithfully preached with the Holy Ghost sent down 
from heaven, and the character, duty and destiny of man is faithfully 
set before him, this error will show itself. It is not a fruit of the 
gospel, but a fruit of the unregenerate heart ; and where the bles- 

T 



239 SOURCES OF MODERN (Lect. 10. 

s-ed fruits of the gospel are apparent, these wild tares of nature will 
often appear. 

This doctrine sometimes settles into the mind after a season of 
special convictions of conscience. Religious impressions, if stifled or 
effaced, generally leave the mind in a^ worse condition— less dis- 
posed to the reception of truth, and more disposed to the reception 
of error. " The last state of that man is worse than the first." 
Persons who, after having been awakened to a sense of their guilt 
and danger, and having commenced an external reformation and 
formed many purposes of religious life, have again relapsed into an 
irreligious and stupid state and are annoyed by the doctrines of 
divine grace, are much inclined to embrace that doctrine which 
shall quiet their consciences by the assurance that there is no day 
of judgment, no hell, no wrath to come. On this ground there is 
some truth in the pretences sometimes put forth, that revivals of 
religion often contribute to increase the number of Infidels and 
Universalists. But if Universalists reap a harvest after a revival of 
religion, of sueh persons as have resisted convictions and turned 
from the holy commandment delivered unto them, it would be noth- 
ing strange. Seasons of powerful awakenings now, as in the days 
of the apostles, are of a sealing character; and while to many the 
means of graca on such occasions are a savor of life unto life, to 
others they are a savor of death unto death. 

Again, familiar intercourse with men whose conversation abounds 
with objections to the truth and cavilings against the distinguish- 
ing doctrines of the divine sovereignty, tends to spread the doctrine 
of Universalism. The power of precept and example is proverbial. 
We are creatures of imitation, and by the constitution of things our 
habits of thought and action are very much formed on the model of 
those with whom we familiarly associate. If a young man familiarly 
associates with these of loose and erroneous sentiments and actually 
hostile to the truth, his mind is actually open to whatever erroneous 
sentiments they may wish to communicate. He has perhaps been 
educated m the belief of future rewards and punishments, and when 
he first hears it assailed by infidel cavils and scoffs, he shudders at 



Lect. 10.) UNIVERSALIS*!. 231 

the impiety. Pie hears the same thing again, but with less horror 
than before. He hears it again and again, and at length ceases to 
be affected by the impiety. At no remote period he takes the ob- 
jector by the hand and greets him as his brother. " To hear objec- 
tions against the truth continually repeated, without being answered ; 
to hear the cause of Christ attacked in every possible form, without 
being in a situation in a becoming manner to undertake its defence, 
must have a powerful and injurious tendency. Conversation, if we 
intend to please and be pleased, should never b© a scene of contin- 
ual dispute ; we must either relinquish such society or hold our 
peace. That person who feels himself called upon, on every occa- 
sion, to defend his religion, will grow weary of contention, and seek 
repose in other kinds of society. But if he continues in it, he will 
learn at length to be silent. Silence will lead to acquiescence, and 
finally he will adjust his opinions to the standard of those with 
whom he associates. If any man supposes that he has strength of 
mind to continue in such society, without having the foundations of 
his confidence in the truth weakened, that man is entirely unac- 
quainted with his ovv T n heart." When a man daily associates with 
those who are advocating Universal salvation, he puts himself under 
a dangerous influence, not only unarmed, but in a posture favorable 
to drink in the poison. 

There are many persons whose minds are so loosely, balanced and 
of such limited information respecting the future destiny of man and 
his obligation to his Creator, that one of the most frivolous objections 
to the truth is enough to overthrow their faith. The man who, if 
properly armed, might stand his ground against a band of ruffians, 
would, if stripped of his armor, fall into their hands an easy prey. 
In like manner, the man who has been long accustomed to study his 
Bible might meet with but little danger from being assailed by the 
cavils of the enemies of truth ; but he who is not well acquainted 
with his Bible, might be easily entangled in their sophistry and led 
away with their errors. Suppose that a man of some cunning should 
approach an unguarded youth who has never doubted the reality of 
a future state and the doctrine of endless punishment, and has never 



232 SOURCES OF MODERN (Lect. 1CL 

known nor examined the broad and solid basis on which they rest* 
And suppose this person should begin to cavil with the doctrine of 
endless punishment and raise his objections against it The youth 
knows not how to dispose of these evasions and objections, since he 
is ignprant of the whole ground of positive proof. He revolves these 
objections and cavils in his mind. He views the doctrine of Uni- 
versalism as pleasant to the eye and much to be desired to make 
one happy. He concludes that there is much truth in the scheme 
presented to his reception, and that he has fortunately found out 
the true doctrine. He becomes prepossessed in favor of this system* 
which holds out that all men, their sins to the contrary notwith- 
standing, will ultimately go to heaven. His youthful mind now 
bloats with pride and self conceit. Thus a mere suggestion that 
would have no influence upon a mind that possesses a deep and 
thorough knowledge of the Bible, gives a fatal turn to his conclu- 
sions. Cavils that might be satisfactorily answered in various ways,, 
and the fallacy of which a thorough knowledge of the word of God 
would enable him to detect, assume from his ignorance the weight 
of arguments. Thus advantage is taken of his ignorance, and his 
prepossessions secured in favor of Universalism. 

This result is often facilitated by the love of novelty and the pride 
of opinion. There is something exceedingly flattering in many 
youthful minds in the reflection, that they are set free from puritan- 
ical prejudices, and that they have broken away from the trammels 
of education, and are giving the world a fine example of independ- 
ent thought and action. But this spirit finds but little nourishment 
in the way of truth ; for that is the path of the wayfaring man and 
the simple and unlettered, as well as the learned few walk in iu 
Filled with ignorance and self-conceit, he looks down upon the 
littleness of a world that is weak enough to believe the Bible. He 
embraces the doctrine of Universal Salvation, because it seems to 
emancipate his mind from superstition and prejudice, and because 
it puts no restraint upon his wayward passions and appetites. He 
can rejoice in his youth ; and let his heart cheer him in the days of 
his youth ; and walk in the ways, of his heart, and in the sight of 



Legt.10.) - UNIVERSALISM. 333 

his eyes, without the painful apprehensions of being brought 
into judgment. 

The very fears of Universalists themselves are doubtless the caus« 
of much care and labor to extend their opinions. In answer to the 
question, "if you are sure that all men will be saved whether they 
believe so or not, why are you so anxious to induce men to believe 
in the final salvation of all men, as though the salvation of men de- 
pended on their believing it," they answer because we want you to 
enjoy the comfort in this life, which a belief in our doctrine affords. 
But who can believe that that is the reason ? The true reason is, 
they have many fears and misgivings with respect to their own doc- 
trine, and they feel themselves fortified and secure in proportion as 
they swell the number of their confederacy. "They fear thai the 
foundation they are resting upon may prove insecure, they wish 
therefore to be strengthened by the co-operation of others, and feel 
a guilty satisfaction, in proportion as they multiply disciples among 
their associates, and are thus enabled to hear an echo in every voice, 
and see the reflections of Universalism in every breast. Taey feel 
their fears allayed, their perturbation subside, in proportion as they 
swell their numbers by extensive confederation." Were it not for 
the fears and misgivings of Universalists themselves, they would not 
make such vigorous exertions to disseminate their sentiments. 
Were there no preaching of a future judgment, no Bibles teaching 
that the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment, no 
christian precept and example to alarm the consciences of the wicked, 
no books, no conversation to alarm the quiet Universalists, the zeal 
of its advocates would soon expire. Universalism itself would die 
and rot out of remembrance, for then there would be nothing to 
disturb their minds, and awake their apprehensions, and create oc- 
casion for making proselytes to their faith. 

And then the unlimited facilities which the apostles of Universal- 
ism have for access to the minds of the young, and ignorant, and 
vicious, affords another source of their doctrine. In short, were it 
possible to collect in one view, all the causes which are now ope- 
rating, and all the advantages under which they operate, we should 



334 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lew. 10, 

not wonder that so many are found to join in the ranks of Univer- 
saiism. And are there so many fruitful sources of the fatal error 
.of Universalism ? Then venture not, my friends, in the way of 
evil instruction. Regard with more horror that man who would 
shake your faith in the doctrine of a future retribution, than the 
assassin who waits to plunge the dagger into your heart. He only 
Aims at the death of your body, which must soon die, according to 
the course of nature ; but the other aims at the death of the soul— 
a death that is fraught with everlasting anguish. Never yield to 
listen to the instructions of those who reject the doctrine of endless 
punishment, until you have made up your minds to encounter tha 
agonies of the lost. 

Nature and Consequences of Modern Universalis^:. 

II. Let us proceed, in the second place, to point out the evil na- 
ture and dangerous moral consequences of that scheme which denies 
the doctrine of endless punishment, and advocates the final salvation of 
all men. 1 shall express my honest convictions without reserve. 
You will remember that I am attacking a system of error, and net 
the characters or motives of those who defend it. None therefore, 
I trust, will take otTence at my plainness of speech. 

1 . This scheme excludes the mercy of God, and sinks the grace of 
the gospel into a mere farce. It asserts that il the wicked Will receive 
a punishment exactly proportioned to the demerit of their sins ; that 
all the hell there is, * is inevitably certain to the wicked ; that their 
portion in the lake of fire and brimstone, is, and ever will be in ex- 
act ratio to their deserts." If this be true, there is no room left 
for the exercise of mercy. Yet the advocates of this scheme are 
constantly declaiming about the goodness of God. But what does 
this language mean, when explained upon their own principles? 
According to their scheme, millions of our race will be saved, who 
will not be indebted either to the grace of God or the death of Christ 
for their salvation ; and consequently must have a heaven to them- 
selves, as they will not be permitted to ascribe their salvation to. G©<£ 
ajid the Lamb. 



Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 235 

Further; if endless putiishment be unjust and was never threat- 
ened, exemption from it must be the sinner's right, and can never 
be attributed to the mercy of God; neither could a Mediator be 
needed to induce a righteous God to liberate the sinner when he 
had suffered the full penalty of the divine law. A state prisoner, 
having served out his term of years, does not consider his liberation 
an act of mercy. On this principle the gospel reveals no pardon for 
sinners, and Christ redeems no sinners from the curse of the law ; 
since its penalty is invariably inflicted upon every transgressed. 
Many leave the world unreformed. If they enter upon heavenly 
happiness when they awake from the sleep of death, then Christ 
certainly has no share in their redemption. They are made holy 
either by passing through the grave, or by the resurrection, or by a 
miracle ; in either case Christ does not redeem them from their 
iniquities. It is true Universalists call Jesus of Nazareth u our 
Saviour," but this is only unmeaning cant. If their doctrine be cor- 
rect, he never did and never can save any one. And i3 this the 
gospel which they are pleased to call glad tidings ? Is that scheme 
glad tidings which reveals no pardon, no forgiveness, but represents 
the sinner as suffering the whole penalty of the law? But do they 
maintain that God punishes sin to the full extent of its demerit and 
then forgives it ? Contemptible absurdity ! The sinner receives 
every lash that his transgressions really deserve, and then the God 
of all grace mercifully pardons him. Who can believe such an 
absurdity ? Such a pardon would not be worth more than one from 
the Pope of Rome. 

2. Modern Universalism is an irrational system. Is it maintained 
that punishment is confined to the present state ; that the wicked are 
not to be punished at all in a fsture state ? This position must be 
maintained on the ground that they shall change their characters 
when they change worlds, or that moral evil is to be buried with the 
body in the grave. Is it said that the wicked at death are delivered 
from all sin ? But hy what means is thi3 accomplished ? Is it by 
death? What fact can be adduced in proof or illustration of the 
power ascribed to death, of changing and purifying the sotfl? 



236 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

What is death ? It is only the dissolution of the animal functions, 
which however closely connected with the mind, are entirely dis- 
tinct from its powers and faculties. But why should the soul grow 
pure from the dissolution of the body ? Many of the corporeal 
faculties often perish during life, and does character change with 
them? Is vice plucked from the mind by this destruction of its 
chief corporeal instruments ? Death is a mere passage from one 
state to another. There is nothing in it that can effect the moral 
state of the soul. 

This idea contradicts our experience of the nature and laws of 
mind ; as it destroys all analogy between the past and the present, 
and seems to destroy even a man's identity. This idea shows an 
utter ignorance of moral goodness. This belongs to free agents, 
and it supposes moral liberty. A man cannot be made holy as a 
machine is put in operation by an outward force. But to suppose 
moral goodness to be diffused into the mind at death just as a ma- 
chine is put in operation, is to destroy all moral agency and 
accountability, and to degrade a free being into a machine. To 
suppose no connection to exist between our present character and 
our future destiny, is to take away the use of the present state. 
Why are we placed in a state of discipline ; why should there be a 
moulding of our hearts to sobriety, circumspection and devotion, if 
we are all of us, be our present characters what they may, soon and 
suddenly to be made perfect in purity and happiness by a sovereign 
act of Omnipotence ? 

But is it maintained that there is a degree of punishment in a fu- 
ture state which will terminate in the reformation and consequent 
happiness of all mankind^ But if the punishment of the sinner is 
hereafter to come to a termination, in what manner is it to be effect- 
ed ? Is it said that his sufferings will be disciplinary ? ButHhis is 
all gratuitous assumption. No such influence is attributed to the 
sufferings of the wicked in the word of God. Further, this notion 
is contradicted by the analogy of experience. The wicked, who 
for their crimes, have been doomed to confinement with those who 
were even move abandoned than themselves, are seldom if ever re- 



Lkct.10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALIS*!.. 237 

formed by such kind of punishment. And where is the evidence 
that the wicked, by being associated with those who continually 
eurse God and look upward, in the future world will be reformed ? 
Surely then there is no reason for believing that all mankind will 
be ultimately saved. This scheme does not coincide with the de- 
cisions of reason, and is opposed to the soundest conclusions of 
reason. And will any one attempt to palm off upon the credulity 
of a community a religious belief so at war with the principles of 
sound reason and common sense ? And will any one be credulous 
enough to believe this irrational system ? 

3. This doctrine is inconsistent with that fear and enmity which 
wicked men manifested to the preaching of Christ and his apostles. 
The fact is unquestionable that their fears were excited and their 
enmity awakened. Christ and his apostles doubtless preached the 
truth ; and they used the most consummate wisdom in timing and 
giving their instructions. Of course, if the dcatrine of universal 
salvation be true, they faithfully, and affectionately, and plainly 
preached that doctrine. They never preached any other doctrine 
inconsistent with it. And they must have been understood to have 
preached that doctrine, for they adapted their addresses to the ca- 
pacities of their hearers, and used great plainness of speech. 

But Christ and his apostles rarely preached a sermon which did 
not excite great alarm among their hearers, and send them away 
murmuring and disaffected with the preacher. Under the ministry 
of the apostles, sinners were "pricked in their hearts," were sud- 
denly and deeply affected with grief, and under the influence of 
their anguish and alarm they exclaimed with earnestness, " Men 
and brethren, what shall we do ?" When Paul reasoned with Felix 
the Roman Governor, of righteousness, temperance, and judgment 
to come, he "trembled;" he was alarmed and terrified in view of 
his past sins and in the apprehension of the judgment to come. It 
seems to have been a full conviction of his guilty and perishing con- 
dition, as a lost and ruined sinner, that induced the Jailor at Phil- 
lippi to inquire, " What must I do to be saved ?" It is evident that 
by this question, he did net refer to any danger to which he might 



238 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect.10. 

be exposed from what had happened. He could not consider him- 
self exposed to any temporal punishment by the Romans, since 
none of the prisoners had escaped or showed any disposition to es- 
cape ; and for the effects of the earthquake, he could not be held 
responsible. The apostles understood him as referring to the eter- 
nal salvation of his soul, as is manifest from the answer ; since to 
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ would have no effect in saving 
him from danger of punishment to which he might be exposed from 
what had taken place. Now if Christ and his apostles believed 
and taught that all mankind will be ultimately saved, why did their 
preaching cause their hearers to tremble, and in deep anxiety to 
inquire what they should do to be saved ? Their solicitude is per- 
fectly natural upon the supposition that they were taught the reality 
of a future state and the danger of their going away into everlast- 
ing punishment. We can easily see that a firm belief of this truth 
and a lively apprehension of it would occasion the very trembling 
and excite the anxious inquiry which were in reality produced. 
But as the opinion under consideration is inconsistent with their 
having been taught any such thing, it renders the fact of their so- 
licitude wholly unaccountable. Were such effects ever known to 
follow the preaching of those who deny the doctrine of future pun- 
ishment? Are sinners pricked in their hearts, and, from a deep 
sense of their guilt and danger, do they ever come to these teach- 
ers with the question, " what must we do to be saved ?" What is 
there so painfully alarming to wicked men in being told that God 
loves them, and regards them as his children, and is determined to 
make them completely happy forever ? t 

And why were Christ and his apostles bitterly opposed aad per- 
secuted in declaring these glad tidings ? Why did the world mani- 
fest so much enmity ? Why were they often enraged and indig- 
nant? and. why -did they express the bitterness and malignity of 
their feelings in gnashing their tteih, and putting Christ and the 
apostles to death ? Were the world unwilling to receive this doc- 
trine, even when supported by a Teacher exhibiting decisive cre- 
dentials that h§ was sent of God ? Were the world unyielding in 






Legt. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALIS!!. 239 

their defence of the gloomy subjects of religion, like Baptists and 
other evangelical churches of the present age, firmly maintaining 
the doctrine of total depravity, and the necessity of a change in the 
present life as a preparation for heaven ? Were these the austere 
sentiments of the world that set them so against Christ and his 
apostles ? And was the enmity of the world awakened by their 
preaching a mere liberal system of religion and for allowing the 
people to live after their own pleasure ? Did you ever know a 
wicked man to hate and oppose others because they taught him the 
doctrine of Universalism ? Does any man feel opposed to it and 
reject it because he means to live in sin, and risk the consequen- 
ces ? Do not the very vilest characters, and the most abandoned 
sinners, receive this doctrine without any opposition ? You may 
vindicate it, with all the zeal and argument you can command, to 
an abandoned congregation, and it will not offend them. Men of 
serious godliness, who pray in their families, who maintain secret 
devotion, who observe the Christian Sabbath, who walk humbly 
with God, and who are actively engaged in promoting the cause of 
benevolent exertion, feel a deep abhorrence of this doctrine, and 
do all they can by moral means to oppose its progress. But when 
were the gay, the worldly, the impenitent, and the irreverent, 
known to do this ? And yet by this class, Christ and his apostles 
were opposed and persecuted. Now the question before us is, ; for 
what were they persecuted and opposed? Were they persecuted 
for declaring the glad tidings of the final salvation of all men? In- 
credible ! since wicked men have always received this doctrine as 
good news of great joy to their unsanctified hearts. Thus the doc- 
trine is inconsistent with both the fear and the enmity manifested 
to the preaching of Christ and his apostles. 

4. Ihis doctrine makes the labors and sufferings of the apostles of 
no real value, nay, the result of the most egregious folly. They did 
expose themselves to all kinds of hardship, fatigue, suffering, perse- 
cution, and even the most cruel and barbarous death. Take the 
case of Paul, since he was caught up into the third heaven and must 
have known whether the righteous only were admitted there, or 



MO MATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect.IO. 

whether the vile and filthy and depraved were sharing in the bless- 
edness of heaven equally with the righteous. What was his life ? 
One scene of la*bor, danger and suffering. He was scourged, whip- 
ped, stoned, beaten and tormented for the name of Jesus. The 
deplorable condition of his Jewish brethren who had crucified the 
Messiah, excited in his bosom continual sorrow and great heaviness 
of heart. He served the Lord with many tears. He tells the 
Ephesian elders that "By the space of three years he ceased not to 
warn every man night and day, with tears." He told the Philippi- 
ans of many among them weeping that they were the enemies of the 
cross of Christ. But why all this zeal and crying and lamentation ? 
For what did he labor and pray and suffer ? To save a few Jews 
from the coming destruction of Jerusalem ? To save a remnant of 
the chosen people from temporal death ? On the principle of Uni- 
versalism all his hearers in a few years would be released from 
suffering and never more experience any torment. If he knew (and 
he must have known it if true) that all are to be made holy and happy 
who rejected as well as those who embraced the gospel, how child- 
ish his tears! How foolish his submission to persecution! He 
labored and suffered for mere nothing. 

5. This doctrine represents God as often treating the wicked far 
better than he does the righteous ; and thus it is inconsistent with the 
character of God as the great Rewarder, and with the great truth that 
mankind are here on probation for the rewards of eternity. " Bloody 
and deceitful men," it is said, " do not live out half their days." 
They die then in the midst of their earthly pilgrimage and are taken 
directly up to heaven ; while the righteous are left to linger out in 
this world of sin and sorrow the full term of their earthly existence 
and arrive late at the kingdom of heaven. In this case the judg- 
ments of God upon the wicked, cutting them off in the midst of their 
days, must, for aught I can see, be regarded as blessings. On this 
principle, how much more highly favored were the antedeluvians 
than Noah ! The people of that day rilled the earth with violence, 
notwithstanding they were favored with the faithful ministry of 
Noah, a preacher of righteousness. Now the flood, which has been 



Lect. 10.) OP MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 241 

generally regarded by christians as a judgment upon those who 
perished in it, and was so considered by the apostles, must be con- 
sidered a blessing upon them, and a judgment upon Noah confined 
as he was in the ark, called to witness the dying agonies of a world, 
and enduring the sorrows of this seemingly dreadful catastrophe for 
forty days and forty nights ; and left at last to dwell here below, a 
solitary individual, for some hundreds of years, before he was per- 
mitted to join his companions in bliss. To this solitary pilgrimage 
was he driven for no other reason than for being a just man and 
perfect in his generation, and for walking with God ; while the true 
cause of his companions being so soon received to heaven was, 
because they had corrupted their way before the Lord and rilled the 
earth with violence. 

Lot too would not have been dispossessed of his inheritance, 
deprived of the society of his wife, and doomed to endure the many 
vexations and disappointments that befel him in his advanced age, 
had he been as wicked as the men of Sodom ; but after a momen- 
tary pang in the " devouring flame of love" on whose rapid wings 
they went to paradise, he would have been received immediately up 
to the mansions of bliss. 

How unfortunate was it that Moses shoulurhave respect unto the 
recompense of reward, and consequently choose rather to suffer 
affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin 
for a season, and to esteem the reproaches of Christ of far greater 
riches than all the treasures of Egypt? Had he been like the 
Egyptians, and not a servant of the Most High God, he had escaped 
the labors and hardships of a forty years' journey through the wil- 
derness, in which he was doomed to hear the reproaches and mur- 
murs of a stiff-necked and rebellious people, and he. had passed 
safely through the waves of the R,edSea into the rest prepaid for 
the people of God. 

Yes, " Pharaoh and his mighty host, 

Had godlike honors given — 

A pleasant breeze brought them with e^se, 

By water up to heaven." — (Peck.) 
u 



242 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect.10, 

And not to mention other cases, how much more happy was 
Judas Ibcariot than the other disciples of our Lord ! He for traitor- 
ously selling his Lord and Master for the paltry sum of " thirty 
pieces of silver," was freed from all the labors, dangers and suffer- 
ings incident to the apostles, and after a momentary pang he swung 
off the gallows into heaven and received a crown of glory that 
fadeth not away, and is now with the rest of the apostles "sitting 
on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel," 

" Know he is not a wretch abhorred. 
Nor for his crimes accurst ; 
He by a cord out- went his Lord ' 
And got to heaven first;" — (Pecs.) 

while the disciples who were faithful to their Master were not 
received into heaven until they endured many unparalleled sufferings 
in this world. Do you say all this is foolish and absurd? I grant 
that it is so, but it is the folly and absurdity of Universalism. 

Further ; this system is inconsistent with the character of God as 
a Rewarder. The essential idea of reward is recompense, remunera- 
tion, distinction, and a distinction rendered manifest by a visible 
difference in the tre aliment of the disobedient and the obedient. 
What is bestowed upon all, irrespective of character, is reward to 
none. Now let me ask is there any such distinction made between 
the righteous and the wicked in the present life as is implied in the 
idea of a perfect retribution ? In this life, while men are on proba- 
tion for the rewards of eternity, God does not make that visible 
distinction between him that serveth him and' him that serveth him 
not, which he designs ultimately to make, and which the promises 
and threatnings of his word require. Is it said "that virtue is its 
own inward, and vice its own punishment ?" This sentiment is not 
correct. God and mankind universally reject it. Every parent 
who puni^es his disobedient child, rejects it. Every master who 
punishes his unfaithful servant, rejects it. Every magistrate who 
calls public ofUnders to justice and punishes them, rejects it. And 
even God himsell as often as he punishes the transgressor of his 



Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 243 

law, rejects it. If sin be its own punishment, then all punishment 
human and divine, inflicted on the transgressor, must be a wanton 
act of cruelty. And if virtue is its own reward, then every reward 
bestowed upon an individual for the performance of a virtuous 
action is altogether gratuitous. But admitting virtue to be its own 
reward and vice its own punishment, it would be nothing to the 
point. The question is, does God invariably reward virtue and pun- 
ish vice in the present life ? Does he invariably make such a visible 
distinction in the present life, between the righteous and the wicked, 
as clearly shows him to be a perfect Rewarder? 

Whether rewards and punishments are invariably awarded to men 
in the present life according to their moral characters, is a point 
which has been lonsr settled. The exnerience of all ages has 
shown, that pleasure and pain, prosperity and adversity, are not dis- 
tributed by Providence exactly according to the virtues and vices 
of mankind, but are scattered with a promiscuous hand. Though 
various instances occur, in which those who have worked them- 
selves out by their crimes have been marked out by the judgments 
of God, and signally punished in the present life ; while those who 
have been eminent for piety, have been signally delivered by the 
interposition of Divine Providence ; yet the objects of God's love 
and hatred are not uniformly distinguished by the present distribu- 
tion of things. The allotments of divine providence in this life, 
are generally the same with respect to the righteous and the wick- 
ed. Neither the rewards of the one, nor the punishment of the 
other, is what might be expected from the hand of the wise Gov- 
ernor of the universe, were the present a state of perfect retribu- 
tion. Admit, if you please, that the grosser vices often bring their 
own punishment. But what will you say of that man who is en- 
gaged in the iniquitous traffic of intoxicating stimulants ? He is 
dealing out the " blue ruin" to his customers ; urging them to drink ; 
and trusting them to whatever quantities they may request. He 
takes their property and their bread out of the mouths of their chil- 
dren. Pie has no regard for the tears of a broken-hearted mother, 
or the cries of naked, starving children. He has no regard to 



244 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

truth or honesty in any of his transactions, any farther than they 
will promote his present pecuniary interests. He is profane and 
corrupt, ,and is given to many secret vices. And while his riches 
are increased, and his influence on account of his wealth, extended, 
he is generally free from the compunctions of conscience. He has 
become so hardened in his iniquity that he suffers but little from the 
accusations of this monitor of his misdeeds. He believes that all 
will fare alike in another world, and experiences no remorse for his 
disobedience. The drunkard, especially in the first stages of in- 
toxication, often enjoys a high degree of mirth and pleasure. The 
unprincipled and depraved miser daily enjoys more or less pleasure 
of a certain kind, unaccompanied by any thing like painful suffer- 
ing. Look at the unprincipled libertine, who can sport with female 
chastity, and who has seduced many an innocent female, and has 
been the means of bringing them to the brothel. While he is 
bringing many a tender and beautiful female to ruin and destruc- 
tion, he drowns his painful reflections by excessive quantities of 
intoxicating liquors. He suffers but very little real remorse on ac- 
count of his numerous, aggravated, diabolical crimes. And is his 

' . So t 

sin his own punishment? He is violently hurried to the grave by 
some disease which instantly deprives him of his reason. And is 
he rewarded in this life according to the deeds done in the body ? 
How many of the most impious and profligate are permitted to 
spend all their days in prosperity ; " to chant to the sound of the 
harp and the viol ; to drink wine in bowls ; and to annoint them- 
selves with the chief ointment. 5 ' " They are not in trouble like 
other men, neither are they plagued like other men. Their eyes 
stand out with fatness, and they have more than heart can wish." 
They are " clothed in purple and fine linen, and fare sumptuously 
every day." 

On the other hand, many of the excellent of the earth pass all 
their days in adversity. "They are plagued all the day long, and 
chastened every morning." They are afflicted, persecuted, tor- 
mented ; and many of their sufferings are for righteousness' sake. 
Take an account of Paul's experience. " Are they ministers of 



Lect.10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 245 

Christ? I, more ; in labors more abundant, in stripes above meas- 
ure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft; of the Jews five times 
received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods ; 
once was 1 stoned ; thrice I suffered shipwreck ; a night and a day 
have I been in the deep ; in journeyings often ; in perils of water ; 
in perils of robbers ; in perils by my own countrymen ; in perils by 
the heathen ; in perils in the city ; in perils in the wilderness; in 
perils in the sea ; in perils among false brethen ; in weariness and 
painfulness; in faintings often ; in co]d and nakedness. Besides 
these things which are without, that which cometh upon me daily, 
the care of all the churches.'' Now will any one say that all these 
sufferings were laid upon Paul because of his pre-eminent wicked- 
ness ? I think not. How idle then the assertion that the present 
is a state of perfect retributions. 

Now, if what has been asserted be true, that rewards and pun- 
ishments are not always distributed in this life according to the 
moral characters of men, then there must be another state — a state 
of exact retributions, in which God will render to every man ac- 
cording to his works. But if all are saved at death, whether peni- 
tent or impenitent, present actions have no reference to future ret- 
ribution, and present character no influence on future destiny. The 
future condition of the soul is not affected by conduct or character 
here. We have nothing to hope or fear from any thing we do in 
this life. Eternal life is sure to all, whether they embrace the gos- 
pel or reject it; whether they practice holiness or wallow in vice, 
leave this world by a natural death, or die by the awful crime of 
3uicide. To these monstrous and absurd conclusions are we neces- 
sarily driven, if we adopt the sentiment that the same happiness is 
in reserve for the wicked in the future world, as for the righteous. 
Now will any sober person believe this gross absurdity ? Is it not 
at war with the dictates of conscience, the precepts of the Bible, 
and the moral sense of mankind? 

6. Again, this sentiment makes God cruel, unjust and false to his 
creatures. It is founded upon ultra Calvinism. It is a fact which 
I presume but few will deny, that most of those who advocate the 

TT* 



246 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10, 

salvation of all men are fatalists. Their motto is, " Whatever is, 
is right." ' " Every thing takes place according to the will of God." 
From these premises, they, by a train of logical reasoning, go onto 
prove their doctrine. "All the actions of men are unavoidable. 
God has willed the act, and he wills the means. They are both 
fixed by the decrees of God. A merciful God will not punish his 
sentient beings for unavoidable acts. Therefore, God will not pun- 
ish his creatures with endless torments." Again, it is argued. 
" All the actions of men are in strict accordance with the will of 
God. God will never punish his creatures for doing his will. 
Therefore he will never punish men with endless torments, since 
their actions are in accordance with the will of God." 

Now it is admitted by all that God does punish men in this life, 
if not in the life to come. And the scriptures plainly show that 
God does punish the wicked for their sins. It follows of course on 
this hypothesis that God is not merciful, for he punishes men for 
actions which they cannot help, and for actions that are in accord- 
ance with his will. Is it said, "God is merciful in this punishment 
because he designs it for their benefit— because he designs by it to 
reclaim them, and prepare them for greater happiness ? But from 
what -does God design to reclaim them ? — from doing his will ? 

Further ; if their actions are in accordance with the will of God, 
and are unavoidable, they cannot be blame v. 7 or thy. Wherein can 
man be to blame for doing that which he could not help ? As his 
acts are all unavoidable, he must be entirely innocent. Now for 
God to inflict punishment upon an innocent being, is an oppressive 
and cruel act. Would the infinitely merciful Creator inflict suffer- 
ings upon his creatures for performing the duties which it is his will 
that they should perform ? Is it not surprising that those who pro- 
fess to believe in a system that above all others should represent 
God as merciful and kind, should hold to such an unmerciful and 
cruel doctrine ? This vindication of the character of God is like 
Judas' salutation of Christ. It betrays what it professes to embrace. 
Once more ; this system not only makes God cruel and unjust to- 
his creatures, but it makes him false to them. Many things are 



Lect.10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 247 

represented in scripture as taking place contrary to the preceptive 
will of God ; but how can this be if all the actions of men are in 
accordance with his will? God has given us a holy and benevolent 
Jaw, and forbidden us to disobey it; and yet if we do disobey it, we 
act according to his will. Is not this an imposition ? If God has 
made us just what we are, he is of course the author of that monitor 
within our breasts which upbraids the transgressor and makes his 
way hard. But all these compunctions of conscience are false if 
men have been doing what they were under an irresistible necessity 
to perform. And has God placed a faculty in the human breast by 
which we acquire our notions cf right and wrong, that testifies to a 
lie to make the transgressor feel that he is very much to blame for 
performing an unavoidable act ? The scriptures therefore must be 
rejected, and conscience must be accounted the mere result of a 
false education. For God would not send a messenger to the soul 
to give it false alarms. But if conscience be called the creation of 
a false education, yet if God controls all things by an irresistible 
decree, this false education must have been directly or indirectly 
the work of God. God caused us to be thus educated and deceived 
and tormented. Take what view of this subject you please, when 
explained on the principle of Universaiism, it makes God unjust, 
cruel and deceptive. 

7. This scheme which we are now considering, perverts the judg- 
ment, stupifies the conscience, hardens ike hearty and tends to infidelity* 
It may well be questioned whether a man can become a confirmed 
Universalist without perverting his judgment. He must it seems 
disregard the strongest intimations of his own mind. The violence 
which requires to be done to the Bible ere this doctrine can be 
received, goes to introduce a habit of treating the sacred oracles 
with levity and contempt, and cf perverting thern in support of a 
preconceived opinion. In proof of the assertion that those who 
maintain this doctrine pervert the scriptures, I would appeal to facts. 
Look at a few specimens of expositions from those who rank the 
first as Universalist divines — expositions which outrage every prin- 
ciple cf sound criticism and every dictate of common sense. Take 



843 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

the following from Luke : " And I say unto you, my friends, be not 
afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that 
they can do ; but I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear ; fear him 
which after he hath killed, hath power to cast into hell ; yea, I say 
unto you fear him." Now compare this plain declaration of scrip- 
ture with the universalist paraphrase. " And I say unto you, my 
friends, be not so much afraid of them (the Jews) who have power 
to scourge you in their synagogues and administer cruel tortures to 
your bodies, but have no authority to take your lives, as of the more 
-extensive authority, (the Romans,) to which your brethren the Jews 
will deliver you, by bringing you before governors and kings ; for 
this power can, after inflicting cruelties on your bodies, doom your 
lives and bodies to be destroyed in Gehenna" Take another speci- 
men : " And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this 
the judgment." Now read the exposition. " ; And as it is appoint- 
ed unto men once to die,' means, as it is appointed unto the men 
who are high priests, to die once a year, by proxy, in their sacrifices ; 
< and after this the judgment,' means, after the high priest died in 
his sacrifices he entered into the most holy place, bearing the judg- 
ment of the people, or the justification of the people." We might 
fill a volume of such specimens. And can a man believe such inter- 
pretations of the sacred scriptures without a perverted judgment? 

This scheme also stupifies the conscience. When conscience 
would lift her warning voice and tell the sinner "thou hast done 
wrong, thou hast sinned against the Lord and wronged thy own 
soul," he will find a retreat from her reproaches behind his 
principles. 

The great object of desire to a wicked man is a heaven suited to 
the prevailing inclination of his heart. If this be not granted, his 
next object is to be exempted from all punishment. And if this 
cannot be, he would prefer a punishment of limited duration. And 
if he can persuade himself that God means by such expressions as 
the following, "eternal damnation," "hath never forgiveness," noth- 
ing more than a lasting chastisement, he will naturally wish that 
the degree of punishment may be abated, as well as its duration 



Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 249 

shortened. And what he wishes to have true, he will labor to work 
himself up to some kind of conviction is true. This conviction, 
which is after ail but that flattering hope which promises itself the 
object of desire, he will construe into confident expectation. By 
this mental process he will harden his heart. 

Again ; to explain away the obvious import of scripture threat- 
nings, is connected with light thoughts of bin, and will lead on to a 
rejection of the gospel. The whole system of redemption by Jesus 
Christ rests upon the scripture declaration of the " exceeding sin- 
fulness of sin." And if the scripture threatenings be given up, or 
construed to mean any thing or nothing, and light thoughts of sin 
be admitted, the heart will become hardened. 

It is obvious, also, that Universalism naturally tends to open infi- 
delity. Have not many of its preachers publicly renounced Chris- 
tianity ? Is not one of the oldest and ablest of the number, now 
editing an atheistical publication, and lecturing to a society of un- 
believers? Have not many, who were formerly its most active 
supporters, arrayed themselves in opposition to Christianity ! Some 
who have left the society of the Universalists, for the societies of 
the Sceptics, declare that the principles of reasoning and interpre- 
tation they formerly adopted lead directly to the rejection of all 
revelation. A physician, who was a noted infidel, once united with 
a society of Universalists. One of his acquaintance said to him, 
u Doctor, how came }^ou to join yourself to those people, when you 
yourself do not profess to believe in any religion ?." "That is it," 
he replied, " I joined them because they are nearest to my belief of 
any society I know of. Many, who now remain within the pale of 
Universalist societies, are in principle, infidel. Have we not here 
practical evidence that Universalism tends to infidelity, nay, that it 
is itself a species of infidelity ? 

8. This doctrine is deeply licentious in its tendency, and fatal to 
all who embrace it. I will not now speak of its actual influence on 
those who have embraced the system. That would be foreign to 
my purpose. The scheme is of recent origin, and its actual influ- 
ence is counteracted by causes that are of a redeeming character- 



250 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

It is rny intention to mention some of the reasons which convince me 
that the natural tendency, of the system is pernicious. It is replete 
with infinite mischief. 

Does it not tend to suicide ? Here is a merchant of fair reputa- 
tion, and promising family, and of respectable connections. He is 
tempted to take another man's property by stealth. He thinks the 
theft may be kept an everlasting secret. The property is tempt- 
ing. He yields, and takes it. At length the theft is detected. He 
is taken up, tried, and condemned. He knows his family and 
friends are disgraced, and his reputation ruined. Shall he submit 
to all this mental punishment, and to that civil punishment that is 
to be inflicted upon him ? Or shall he, by an easy death, avoid all 
misery, and enter heaven ? If he acts in accordance with the mo- 
tives which generally regulate human actions, on his own princi- 
ples, he will surely take his life and escape to heaven. Now, look 
into the world. How many do } T ou see who have no prospect be- 
fore them but suffering, or ignominy, or punishment ? Is it not the 
dictates of sound wisdom to shun the evil and seek the good ? 
Will they not act in accordance with the principle of our nature in 
escaping misery ? This they can never do while they remain in 
this world. And as the desire of happiness is natural to man, will 
they not obey its dictates ? Now if they are sure of an unimpeded 
entrance into bliss without any intervening pain, after quitting their 
earthly stage of action, will they not hasten their exit ? I cannot 
answer for others, but for myself I am willing to state my deliber- 
ate conviction. If I should be placed in such circumstances, and 
had as firm a belief in Universalism as I have in the opposite, I 
should not hesitate one moment. And I should be most fooJish not 
to escape from months of misery to perfect and endless bliss, when 
the simple act of releasing myself from this world of woe would not 
cost me as much pain as I experience for one hour. Now, "cutting 
the throat from ear to ear is the shortest cut to heaven." And 
this is very convenient. It saves us the trouble of repentance and 
amendment. It ends our sorrow and our sins in the twinkling of 
an eye. In this way I should please God. He wishes, as do all 



Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 251 

fond parents, to have his children happy. And I cannot please him 
more than by gratifying his paternal solicitude, and hastening, as 
did Judas and Crowningshield, into his presence. Nor is this all. 
I think I have some benevolent feelings. I wish to see every one 
enjoying happiness. I frequently meet with many individuals who 
I must believe, endure a great amount of mental and bodily suffer- 
ing. If I had a firm belief in Universalism, I could not help urg- 
ing them to commit suicide. I should do this on the principle of 
benevolence. I see not how I could do otherwise, and act as a 
consistent and benevolent Christian. 

Now, is it not a fact before the public, that many professed Uni- 
versalists have committed suicide ? And do they not act out fully 
their principles ; and prove their faith by their works ? Mankind 
who believe that they are accountable to their Maker, and that their 
present character and conduct has a moulding influence upon their 
future destiny, would not dare to end their lives by their own vio- 
lent hand, and thus rush unbidden into the presence of the Al- 
mighty with a lie in their right hand. But those who deny the 
doctrine of future punishment, to be consistent, would use the first 
implement of death they could find, ratsbane, rope, or razor, to work 
out an eternal weight of glory. A gentleman, " occupying stations 
of distinguishing usefulness and responsibility," communicated to 
the editor of the Christian Soldier some facts which fell under his 
own observation. " In the southern part of Worcester county, (Mss.) 
where I at that time resided, there occurred, only a few years since, 
not less than seven or eight cases of suicide, and all them professed 
Universalists ; — in one town, two men by hanging ; in another, two 
females, one by hanging, and the other by opium ; in a third, three 
men, two by shooting and one by hanging ; and in a fourth, a young 
man, by shooting." You have probably heard of Mr. Giles' case. 
"He, in 1827, being accused of a crime, determined to evade the 
sentence of human laws, by hastening to the protection of his 
Heavenly Father. He accordingly wrote a note expressing his 
full belief of the final salvation of all men, and a wish that his coffin 
might be made a by Universalist, and his funeral sermon preached by 



■232 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

a Universalist minister ; and then went away and hanged himself. 1 ' 
This surely was the natural tendeney of his belief. If it is true 
that all mankind are candidates for heaven, and that all will be 
happy the moment they enter the next conscious existence beyond 
the grave ; when they can be no longer happy on earth, the sooner 
they leave this world the better. Hence, if an individual can per- 
suade himself that all will be happy after death, will he not be 
tempted to hasten his exit by his own hand ? Now I believe that 
wilful suicide is a crime of fearful magnitude. It is treason against 
the divine sovereignty. The prerogative of God, to fix the " bounds 
ef our habitation," and appoint our time, are defied. The ar- 
rangements of infinite w T isdom are arraigned and condemned by 
this unnatural act. The moral government of God is insulted. It 
is treason against nature, and her most powerful law, self-preserva- 
tion. It is treason against society, which has claims upon the indi- 
vidual from which he cannot be absolved without its consent — 
except by the will of God, who having at the first formed the bonds 
of society, has a right to sever them at his pleasure. It is treason 
against the revealed will of God. His express command is " thou 
shalt do no murder ;" and he is no less guilty who lifts his hand 
against himself, than he who assassinates his neighbor. Is not that 
sentiment then which obviously tends to suicide, of pernicious 
tendency ? 

Does not Universalism strike at the root of all experimental 
religion ? Does it not destroy all moral distinctions between virtue 
and vice ? Does it not take off every restraint from the corruptions 
of human nature and open the flood-gates of iniquity ? Does it not 
ssem to offer a bounty on wickedness? I know that Uuiversalists 
will be offended at this. And I am well persuaded that it will have 
but little other influence on their minds than to offend or enrage 
them. They may deny however if they please, the licentious and 
dangerous tendency of their doctrine. But so long as reason and 
conscience have any influence over the minds of men, they will 
believe, as they ever have done, that sentiments like the above take 
off every restraint from vice, and strike at the dearest interests of 
morality and religion. 



Lkct. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 253 

Is it asserted that universal salvation is universal love; therefore 
the preaching of this doctrine produces universal love ? But to 
assert that the preaching of this doctrine disarms men of their 
enmity, is assuming what is not proved. It also makes salvation 
and the doctrine of salvation the same thing, which is not true. The 
question is, what doctrine is the most calculated to reform the 
world, and what the most calculated to encourage men to persist in 
sin ? Now we have seen that the doctrine of future punishment 
imposes a restraint upon the evil propensities of the natural heart, 
and that the opposite doctrine takes off every restraint. Hence, 
this latter is not in its nature and tendency calculated to promote 
universal holiness. Will not a man who sincerely believes it, reason 
thus, if he reasons at all ? " I am placed in this world for happiness ; 
I must live again after death ; I must be happy in heaven ; God will 
at all events make me both good and happy after death ; I will 
therefore indulge myself in the pleasures of sin ; I will gratify my 
passions and appetites ; I do not believe that the punishment attend- 
ant on such a course will be half so great as the enjoyment. But 
if I find myself involved in distress and see no fair prospect of hav- 
ing more happiness than misery here, I will release myself from all 
my sufferings. I will go home to glory." 

Again, is it asserted that some who embrace Universalism are 
moral ? This may be true. I do not say that all who embrace this 
doctrine are dissolute men. I do not deny but there are some 
Universalists of correct moral deportment. And with regard to 
their morality as a sect, I do not and I need not affirm. Of this 
every man may form his own opinion. But that their morality is the 
fruit of their principles, remains to be proved. But if they are 
moral, they are so on other principles than those of Universalism. 
This assumes that though they indulge in all manner of enormities 
during this life, yet they shall never forfeit the love of God nor 
endanger their eternal salvation. Of course it destroys the great 
system of motives to holiness of heart and holiness of life. It saps 
the very foundation of Christian morality. It teaches U9 to take 
such a course as will ensure the greatest degree of present happi- 
v 



254 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect.10„ 

ness. This can be frequently obtained by deviations from the path 
of rectitude. Their morality in ail probability is owing to the influ- 
ence of early religious education, or to the want of a full belief in 
their own doctrine. 

Once more ; is it replied that bad men are to be found in every 
denomination of professing Christians ? This also is undoubtedly 
true. But the question is, does not that system which we are now 
exposing, enlist the judgment, the will, and even self-love itself on 
the side of sinful indulgences, and furnish ground for hope and joy 
to the sinner going on still in his trespasses, even supposing he 
continues in them until death ? Does it not strengthen the hands 
of the wicked that he should not turn from his wicked ways by 
falsely promising him life ? But it is not the good or bad conduct 
of a few individuals in any body of professing Christians that proves 
any thing on either side. It is the conduct of the body in general 
from which we ought to form our estimation. And brought to this 
test, the system before us must be pronounced of licentious tendency. 
That there are those who profess to believe in the doctrine of eter- 
nal rewards and punishmests, and hear this doctrine preached from 
Sabbath to Sabbath and yet continue in sin, will be readily granted 
But who ever urged the doctrine of eternal punishment as a ground 
for living in sin ? On the contrary, does it not furnish a powerful 
motive against sin ? The reason why some men hear the doctrine 
of endless punishment preached, and give their assent to it, and 
yet live in sin, is obviously this : they are, as it respects themselves 
building their hopes of heaven upon the sandy foundation of future 
repentance and amendment, or up on the presumption that they shall 
all finally get safe to heaven They are in fact, whatever may be 
their professed sentiments, relying upon the doctrine of universal 
salvation. 

In con'iunation of the foregoing remarks, let me appeal to facts. 
What is the usual effect of this doctrine in places where it is 
p, ached at the present day ? Where has there been a revival o* 
religion under the preaching of this doctrine ? Has it ever pro- 
duced conviction for sin ? Does it ever excite the inquiry so often 



Lect.10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 255 

made under the preaching of the apostles and their successors, 
" What must I do to be saved ?" Where has there been a reforma- 
tion of morals by the preaching of this doctrine ? Look at its 
fruits ! The very lads in our streets who have heard this doctrine, 
when reproved for their immoralities and reminded of the solemn 
consequences of their conduct, have replied, u we do not believe in 
the doctrine of future punishment." " There is no hell." A travel- 
ler in one of the New England States called at a public house for 
entertainment. He saw a company at the bar indulging in profanity 
and ribaldry. Their reply to his counsel and reproof was, " We are 
all Universalists here." And to mention one case more as a speci- 
men of the feelings of thousands, a debauchee was found by a 
missionary, in doubtful company, in West Boston. " The preacher 
expostulated with him for his conduct, and asked him where he 
supposed such a course would lead him." And what do you think 
was his reply ? Was he conscience-smitten, and did he promise 
repentance and amendment ? No. His reply was, u I believe in 
the doctrine of universal salvation." With this salvo to his con- 
science, he shielded off the reproofs of the man of God. This was 
his certificate for indulgence. With this he could buy his pardon 
for any indulgence in sin that he might wish to practice. 

I have known drunkards, and swearers, and libertines, and infidels 
to become converts to this scheme, but the profession of their new 
faith produced no reformation of character. They were drunkards, 
and swearers, and libertines, and infidels still. Under the influence 
of cfteir new faith, they have remained the same impenitent, prayer- 
less and filthy persons they were before. Their new faith has im- 
posed no restraint upon their wayward hearts and lives. The prac- 
tical language of their faith is, 

"Go riot, drink, and every ill pursue, 

For joys eternal are reserved for you — 

Fear not to sin till death shall close your eyes ; 

Live as you please, yours is the immortal prize." 



25(3 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. Ht 

I would enquire who generally compose the audience of Univer- 
salist preachers ? Are they the more serious part of the community ? 
Are they persons who give the most substantial evidence of genuine 
piety ? Do they generally pray in their families, in secret, and in 
the public assembly? Do they generally observe the christian 
sabbath and the public ordinances of the gospel ? Have they any 
foundations of charity ? Have they their associations for the relief 
of the poor, their charity schools, and their seminaries of learning? 
Some exertions have been made to establish a literary institution in 
this State, but without any signal success. And this is as might be 
expected, since many of them have sneered at the idea of our pres- 
ent attainments having any bearing on our future condition. 

Those who according to the Bible give the best evidence of piety, 
reject this doctrine as false and ruinous to the best interests of man. 
The greater part of the community who are sober and industrious, 
though not professedly pious, reject this doctrine. They reason 
thus, — if the doctrine is true it is useless, and if it is false they do 
not want to hear it. And they reason very correctly. 

So far as my observation extends, and I have had a very favora- 
ble opportunity of forming a correct opinion, the persons who 
generally attend upon Universalist preaching are the more ungodly 
part of the community. I have observed that persons of deistical 
sentiments who have long endeavored to discredit divine revelation, 
and thus subvert the foundations of Christianity until their open 
opposition to the Bible has become unpopular, are the first to attend 
on the instructions of Universalist preachers, and to become the 
open advocates of their scheme ; that they might, it would seem, be 
screened from the odium which has been heaped upon them for 
rejecting the Bible, by thus becoming believers in Christianity, 
while they could reject all its doctrines which imposed a restraint 
upon their moral and corporeal powers. I have observed that those 
who are addicted to profanity, who habitually neglect the public 
worship of God, and who violate the institution of the christian 
sabbath by business, amusement, or gambling, will be seen attend- 
ing on that preaching which says, " you ought not to be wicked it 



Lect 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 257 

is true, but if you are, God will love you just as well." This they 
do, iu all probability, not because they love the service of the sanc- 
tuary or rejoice in the purifying influence of truth, but because they 
love to hear it proclaimed that "they should be glad and rejoice in 
the midst of their impiety, for heaven with all its glories is theirs 
forever." I have observed that those persons who have violated 
their marriage contract, and who are accustomed " to drink stolen, 
waters as sweeter than their own," are usually highly gratified to 
hear that there are no rewards and punishments beyond the grave, 
and that " adulterers shall inherit the kingdom of God." I have 
observed also that the drunkard is very much delighted to hear that 
"glorious doctrine of impartial grace" which assures him that 
drunkards shall inherit the kingdom of God, and yes, 

" That tottering drunkard shall to glory reel." 

Under the influence of ardent spirits and infernal spirits, he 
becomes a convert to, and an apostle of, this new-fangled divinity, 
and belches it out with the exhalations of his own fceted breath. 
He is the loudest in its praise under the influence of strong drink. 
I have also observed that those young men who are of loose princi- 
ples and habits, who are accustomed to sport with female chastity, 
and whose steps according to the Bible take hold on death and hell, 
delight to hear it asserted in the most astounding manner that the 
Bible lies, and that all fornicators shall inherit the kingdom of God. 
I have further observed that if there are any persons of respecta- 
bility and correct morals who attend on the preaching of Universal- 
ists, they are usually sceptical respecting the doctrine of total 
depravity of human nature, personal election, regeneration by the 
Spirit ; and they are violently opposed to revivals of religion, and 
to most of the benevolent operations of the day in which all evan- 
gelical christians are engaged. They are not seen co-operating 
with Bible societies in sending the word of life to the perishing. 
They manifest no interest in the prosperity of Foreign and Domes- 
tic Missions. The cause of Missions is the cause of God ; and he 
is now giving signal success in planting the standard of the cross 
" v* 



253 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10, 

in heathen lands. In Tahiti a nation has been born in a day. The 
Sandwich Islanders have cast their idols to the moles and the bats. 
The spirit of Christianity has been shed forth in copious effusions 
upon Ceylon. India has received the word of life. In Burmah 
there are many delightful tokens of the near approach of that 
blessed period when idolatry shall cease, and the religion of Christ 
become triumphant. In Africa the waters of salvation are begin- 
ning to flow and to fertilize her moral deserts. In France and 
Germany the gospel has shed forth her pure and holy light. Even 
in China, where Satan has long fortified himself in his strong holds 
behind her imperial battlements, and utterly forbid the entrance of 
the gospel, preparations are now making to storm his castle, to 
take from him his armor in which he trusts, and to spoil his goods 
and divide the spoils. The western wilderness has begun to bud 
and blossom as the rose. In addition to this, the spirit of free 
enquiry has gone forth. The wants of the six hundred millions of 
heathen have become known, and their deplorable condition has 
affected the hearts and opened the hands of the pious and benevo- 
lent. Many of our pious youth have come forward and offered 
themselves for the missionary service. Missionaries have already 
gone, and are now going, to the four quarters of the globe, and 
their power and means of doing good are annually augmenting. 
The glorious work of evangelizing the heathen is commenced, and 
the holy enterprise will go on till the seventh angel shall proclaim 
that "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdom of our 
Lord and of his Christ." Now who manifest the most of the 
benevolent spirit of Christianity, those who are engaged in the 
cause of Missions, or those who stay at home and oppose this work ? 
The sum of all the foregoing is, that Universalism is highly objec- 
tionable. It is of the most pernicious moral tendency. 

Now look at Universalism as it has existed in this country for the 
last twenty years. Many societies it is true have been formed, but 
many have dwindled into insignificance. Many have a name to 
lire, but are virtually dead. Many have preaching but a ^ew sab- 
baths during the year. Some have sold their houses of public 



Lect.10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 259 

worship to other societies. And though some societies are in a 
prosperous condition, yet as a denomination they are on the wane- 
Now look at the character of its preachers. Is their preaching in 
accordance with the commission given by our Saviour to his 
apostles ? Is it the grand object of the preachers of Universalism 
to make their hearers practical christians ; to make them love God 
with all their hearts and their neighbors as themselves ? Do they 
not spend much of their time in ridiculing, slandering, and condemn- 
ing other denominations ? If they can hunt up a lie, or give chase 
to some defamatory insinuation, they desire no better business. 
They are fond of wielding the weapon of slander against their 
orthodox adversaries. Let any matter of fact be published, like the 
appendix to these Lectures, and let it be vouched by the most indu-. 
bitable testimony, and you may not be surprised to hear them call 
it an orthodox lie. Do they not devote much of their public labors 
in defending the peculiar dogmas of their creed, and in explaining 
away those passages which seem to teach a contrary doctrine ? I 
leave these questions for each one to answer for himself. 

It is no pleasing task to say any such things of the religious prin- 
ciples or characters and preaching of any class of men. I make no 
personal reflections upon any one. Personal invective I consider 
both impertinent and hurtful. I do not ridicule Universalism. Jt 
13 in itself ridiculous, and I have attempted nothing further than to 
expose it as it is. To point out the inconsistency and absurdity of 
an erroneous system, and to do it in a cool and dispassionate man- 
ner, is not inconsistent with the principles of natural and revealed 
religion. If I have in any instance deviated from this, I ask the 
pardon of my hearers. 

I would have forborne to have said these things did I not believe 
that Universalism is one of the most pernicious heresies ever in- 
vented by man. But believing as I do, that it is of pernicious 
tendency to both civil and religious society, I cannot suppress what 
are obviously its practical consequences. 

In places where this doctrine is newly broached, its corrupting 
tendency is counteracted by the force of early religious education,, 



260 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

cind the prevalence of sentiments and habits formed under an evan- 
gelical ministry. Here its pernicious effects may not at first appear. 
But what would be the effect if this doctrine were to become the 
general doctrine of the day, and were it preached from sabbath to 
sabbath in all our congregations ? What would be the result if all 
believed this doctrine and acted fully up to its principles ? What 
would be the effect should a preacher from sabbath to sabbath 
address the prayerless, the impenitent, and the vicious part 
of his audience in something like the following language ? — 
"Are any of you afraid of endless punishment? There is no 
such thing. This life is a state of retribution as well as of 
probation. Here virtue receives an ample reivard of happiness, and 
here sin meets a competent punishment of misery. Punishment in 
the future state is not threatened in the divine word. Men will not 
be punished in the future world for the sins of this life. The future 
condition of men will not be affected by the characters they have 
here formed. Are any of you afraid of hell ? There is no such 
place of punishment. Hell means only the grave. It is only a 
false terror got up by the orthodox to scare people. All the terrors 
of the divine law are only works of mercy by which God is bring- 
ing the sinner to the bliss of heaven. The thunders of the divine- 
power, the lightnings of his wrath, are so many loud and unequivo- 
cal proclamations of God's universal and impartial love to all his 
offspring. Let your hearts be at rest. Heaven is yours. In the 
midst of all your blasphemies, your extortions, your robberies, your 
murders, rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in 
heaven. And should you find that by walking in the imagination 
of your own hearts your present misery is greater than your happi- 
ness, you have only to deliver yourselves from the distressing 
consequences of your guilt by putting an end to your life. 

4 For all who fall by suicide, 

Are wise beyond compare, 

They spill their blood, then fly to God 

And reign eternal there.' " 



Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALIS^!. 261 

Can you doubt what would be the effect of such preaching were 
it to become general ? Would it not take off all fear and all re- 
straint from the corrupt propensities of fallen natures, and be follow- 
ed by the most deplorable dissoluteness of manners and morals ? 
It is fitted to this end, and has already had this effect upon many. 
By embracing this doctrine, many of our youth have lo3t all sense 
of mora] obligation, and have given themselves up to the most 
criminal excesses. Has it not then every work of what the apostle 
calls a " damnable doctrine ?" 

Concluding Remarks. 

And now in bringing these Lectures to a close, permit me to 
make one solemn appeal to your heart3 and consciences. In 
addressing you upon these subjects discussed, I have proceeded 
upon the supposition that you, my dear hearers, were not fully con- 
firmed in the belief of the final salvation of all men. On any other 
ground I should have considered my labor as almost in vain. For 
I have long regarded a confirmed Universalist as one of the most 
hopeless characters in the community. Should a ray of divine light 
beam upon his darkened understanding, and should he feel that he 
was resting upon a sandy foundation, the pride of consistency and 
regard to present comfort would lead him to hold fast his delusion. 
How difficult would it be for him to come down from the high stand 
which he has taken into the dust, and to acknowledge, after all his 
confident boasting, that he has been left to believe a lie ? How 
hard to be assailed with the hiss of contempt from those who have 
congratulated him in being freed from puritanical prejudices! If 
doubts should sometimes force themselves upon his mind, is it not 
probable that the fear of the world's dread laugh, and the feeling of 
safety he loves to cherish, would lead him to hold fast his error ? 

Now I am anxious to warn you from following his steps. I would 
persuade you to shun the baneful influence of those errors which 
some are at the present day disseminating with great apparent 
zeal. Be not deceived by their 'pretensions to superior knowledge 
and penetration. Men of the strongest minds and of the most exten- 



262 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect.10. 

sive literary attainments, have often fallen into the grossest absur- 
dities in their religious speculations, and then have employed all 
their wit, and sophistry, and learning, to maintain and propagate 
them. Some, confiding in their superior abilities, have been allured 
into their errors. But this betrays great mental weakness. Great 
men are not always wise and good men. They are as liable to err 
as any others. Hence you should not receive any opinion without 
strict examination. Look at it in all its bearings, and compare it 
with the Bible. Take the Bible, and not human authority, for your 
guide. 

Be not biased in favor of error on account of the amiable moral 
character of its advocates. Men of the strictest morality have dis- 
seminated the most false and pernicious doctrines. A person may 
himself maintain an unsullied purity of outward deportment for the 
purpose of gaining the confidence of his fellow men, and inducing 
them the more readily to listen to and imbibe his erroneous doc- 
trines. Hence those who teach them are to be shunned as corrupt- 
ers of mankind. 

Believe not the propagators of error, though they may make the 
greatest pretensions to liberality, sincerity, and impartiality. Such 
pretensions often deceive and prejudice the incredulous. Those 
who use such artifices, therefore, are the more dangerous, and their 
seductive influence is to be the more studiously avoided. " Cease, 
my son, to hear the instruction that cause th to err from the words of 
knowledge." 

You and I, my friends, must soon die and go into eternity. After 
a few more revolving suns, and we must pass into the unseen world. 
There shall we know from joyful or woful experience what wil be 
the future destiny of man. 

Now, before you make up your minds to embrace that doetrine 
which we have been exposing, seriously ponder the thoughts that 
bave been here suggested. In relation to a subject which involves 
the interests of the unseen world, and concerns our future and ever- 
lasting well-being, it becomes us to proceed with caution. A mis- 
take here may prove fatal. Yield not to the mere dictates of feel- 






Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNI VERS ALISM. 263 

ing on this subject. It is a maxim, the correctness of which is 
generally admitted, that, in every question of duty and happiness, 
where one side is doubtful and the other is safe, or where one side 
is the more safe than the other, it is the manifest dictate of wisdom 
to take the safer side. Now those who believe in the immortality 
of the soul, the intermediate state, and who repent of sin and be- 
lieve in Christ, and who live soberly, righteously and godly in this 
world, will certainly be happy after death. Of this there can be 
no doubt. This truth \ have never heard called in question. It 
shall be well with the righteous. " The Lord will give grace and 
glory, and no good thing will he withhold from them that walk up- 
rightly." Perfect holiness and eternal happiness are promised 
blessings that Infinite Love and Almighty Power will bestow upon 
them. On the other hand, it cannot be pretended that there is the 
same scriptural evidence that it will be well with the wicked after 
death. To say the least, there is much in the Bible that seems to 
indicate the contrary. How then would a wise and prudent man 
act? Would he risk the future and eternal destiny of his soul on 
what may prove fallacious, and ruin him forever ? Acting on a safe 
principle, you will reject that system which w r e have been exposing 
and cleave unto that doctrine which leads to a life that is unto holi- 
ness, the end of which is everlasting felicity in heaven. 

Dear youth ! I know that owing to the influences by which 
you are surrounded and to the moral state of your hearts, you are 
in imminent danger of embracing the delusive scheme of universal 
salvation. To you, therefore, we would give the caution and direc- 
tion contained in our text, " Cease, my son, to hear the instruction 
that causeth to err from the words of knowledge." The voice of 
reason and the voice of God warns you to shun the presence and 
influence of those who lie in wait to deceive and destroy. Shun 
their doctrine as you would avoid the snares of death. It may be 
agreeable to you for the present to hear a doctrine which has a ten- 
dency to quiet your apprehensions of a state of future punishment, 
but at the last it will sting like a serpent and bite like an adder. 
Set a high value upon the Bible. Be not satisfied with a mere as- 



364 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

sent to its authority or its doctrines, but let your faith in both be 
intelligent and influential. Study it daily, with diligence and 
prayer. Endeavor not only to become acquainted with its truths, 
but imbued with its spirit. This volume is able to make you wise 
unto salvation through the faith in Jesus Christ. O ! then bind it 
to your heart as man's richest treasure, as heaven's best gift. In 
this way you will become fortified against the influence of evil pre- 
cepts and examples, and will have a sure guide through this dark 
world — will have a substantial solace in all your afflictions, losses, 
and disappointments, and an unfailing source of comfort in the hour 
of death. 

My Christian brethren ! a solemn and important duty devolves 
upon you. "Ye are the light of the world ; a city set on an hill 
that cannot be hid." If you have friends that profess to believe in 
thfc doctrine of universal salvation, endeavor by every tender and 
faithful persuasion to induce them to think and reflect, and retrace 
their steps. Let it appear in your daily deportment and in your 
precepts that you are a firm and sincere believer in the doctrine of 
future retribution. Let it be your aim not merely to establish their 
faith in the speculative notion of endless punishment, but to present 
such an array of evidence before their minds as shall give them 
an abiding conviction of the absurdity of their scheme, and the 
truth of your doctrine ; and which as shall lead them to feel the 
necessity of having a better foundation on which to rest than the 
unsubstantial prop of Universalism. You need not waste your en- 
ergies in controversy with them, for they will admit and deny just 
what they please. But urge upon them the necessity of practical 
piety — repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. 
And enforce your instructions from the solemn consequences of a 
religious or an irreligious life. Be faithful, so that if they do not 
heed your instructions you can take them to record that you are 
pure from their blood. And especially " watch and keep your gar- 
ments clean." This is of the utmost importance. If those who 
reject the doctrine of endless punishment can And any thing that 
seems to favor their scheme, in any of the writings of any author 



Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALIS!*!. 265 

who was a professed believer in the doctrine of future punishment, 
they will use it as a weapon against the truth. Thus if any thing 
can be found to favor their views in the fanciful and diffuse writings 
of Adam Clark, the wild assertions of Parkhurst and Gill, the unrea- 
sonable and unscriptural concessions of Campbell and Stewart, they 
will bring it forward as a proof that the orthodox writers do not 
believe in the doctrine of endless punishment. And if they can find 
that any of the members of orthodox churches are wavering on this 
point, or are professedly believing in the final salvation of all men, 
it is trumpetted the length and breadth of the land that the orthodox 
reject the doctrine of endless punishment. And they take encour- 
agement from this source to settle down more firmly than ever in 
the belief of their favorite delusion. I believe there are but few 
instances in any orthodox church where persons can be found who 
do not believe in the doctrine of endless punishment. If any cases 
of the kind occur, they are found in persons who are living in the 
neglect of their covenant obligations, and are unworthy of a place 
in the christian church. On this point the Baptist, as a denomina- 
tion, believe, " That there is a radical and essential difference be- 
tween the righteous and the wicked ; that such only as are justified 
through faith in the name of the Lord Jesus and sanctified by the 
spirit of our God, are righteous in his esteem ; while all such as 
continue in impenitence and unbelief, are in his sight wicked and 
under the curse ; and this distinction holds among men both in and 
after death." They also believe, "That the end of this world is 
approaching ; that at the last day Christ will descend from heaven, 
and raise the dead from the grave to final retribution ; that a solemn 
separation will then take place ; that the wicked will be adjudged 
to endless punishment and the righteous to endless joy ; and that 
the final judgment will fix forever the final state of men in heaven 
or hell on principles of righteousness." I know of no orthodox 
minister who rejects the doctrine of endless pnnishment, and no 
worthy member in any orthodox church that professes to believe in 
the doctrine of universal salvation. In view of these things, breth- 
ren, let us be consistent. Let us feel our responsibility. Let us 

do our duty. 

w 



266 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

To the confirmed Universalist I would now address myself 
with kindness and affection. And may I not hope that yon will 
hear me with calmness and decide with impartiality ? Permit me 
to propose to you a few questions. What was the state of your 
mind when you first inclined to your present views ? Had you no 
aversion to the holy and humbling doctrines and duties of religion ; 
no fears of future punishment ; no wish to find out some method by 
which you might enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, and yet be 
sure of going to heaven ? Was it when you were deeply anxious 
about the salvation of your soul, and earnestly seeking relief by fer- 
vent prayer, and by diligently reading the holy scriptures, that you 
adopted your present religious sentiments ? Or was it not rather 
when you were living in neglect of prayer, when you were engross- 
ed in pleasure and business of this life, and when you were indul- 
ging a speculative turn of mind? In short, was it the love of 
holiness or the love of sin— a delight in the self-denying duties of 
religion, or an aversion to them — that led you to seek repose and 
quiet in the place you now occupy ? Retrace your steps ! Ponder 
the paths of your feet ? 

When Rousseau Was impressed with the doctrine of eternal pun- 
ishment he could scarcely endure his existence ; but he confesses 
that he found, in the reasonings of a certain lady with whom he lived 
in the greatest possible familiarity, all those ideas which he had 
occasion for. She would tranquilize his mind by persuading him 
that "the supreme Being would not be perfectly just, were he just 
with us, for not having given us the means of being perfectly holy, 
he would be unjust in requiring more than he has given." Have 
you not found the same in the conversation and writings of those 
whose sentiments you have embraced ? Were you not, previous to 
your embracing your present system of belief, living in disobedience 
to the known commands of God ? And did not the holy precepts 
and awful threatnings of the Bible gall your spirits ? And did you 
not settle down in your present belief to shield you from the fears 
of the just judgments of God and the stings of an accusing con- 
science ? Was not this the true source whence originated your 






Lect. 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISAl. 267 

present belief? Was not something like this the process of your 
minds in coming to the conclusion that all mankind will be happy 
immediately on entering the next conscious existence ? 

What in respect to yourself has been the practical influence of 
your doctrine ? The gospel of Jesus Christ when received, produ- 
ces repentance for sin, faith, prayer, and a conscientious performance 
of all the moral duties of religion. Has this been the practical in- 
fluence of your system ? Since you settled down in your present 
belief have you had a deeper insight into the corruptions of human 
nature ? Have you had a deeper conviction for sin and a stronger 
desire to be delivered from it than you had before ? Are you more 
conscientious, uniform, and devoted in the duties of the christian 
life, and more concerned for the glory of God, and more anxious for 
the spiritual welfare of your fellow men ? Do you pray more in 
your family and in your closet ? Do you keep the sabbath more 
strictly ? Do you read the Bible more seriously, and with more 
fervent prayer that the Spirit of truth would guide you into all evan- 
gelical truth? Do you feel more cf a benevolent concern for 
careless, christless sinners around you, and for the millions of be- 
nighted heathen who are perishing in their sins ? Have you enlist- 
ed in the cause of benevolent exertion with all your soul ? 

I would enquire again what is the use of your doctrine ? If it is 
true, there will be no danger in not believing of it ; and nothing is 
gained so far as I can see, in believing in it. What motive then 
can you urge to induce any one to embrace your system ? Do you 
say it affords peace and comfort to the mind, and delivers it from 
many tormenting fears ? But to whom, I would ask, does it afford 
peace and comfort ? Are such characters as the Bible denominates 
humble, penitent, devout, and as are devoted to the glory of God 
and the welfare of men, cheered and encouraged by your system? 
No, they are safe and happy without it, and have no need of its 
consolations. Those who, according to the Bible, give the best 
evidence of piety, have in every age of the Christian church abhor- 
red and rejected your doctrine and embraced the opposite scheme. 
Who then are comforted by your system? The impenitent, the 



jm NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. 10. 

profligate, and the abandoned. They are encouraged, it is true, 
not to forsake their sins, but to believe that they shall have peace 
though they live in sin and walk after the imagination of their 
heart. Hence if your doctrine is true, it is a truth of such a nature 
that the world would be far better without the knowledge of it than 
with it. It not only does no good, but it is of a very pernicious ten- 
dency, as has been already shown. 

I would enquire again, is your doctrine safe ? Those who believe 
in a future state of retribution, and prepare for it by a life of peni- 
tence, faith and prayer, will be saved. On this point there can be 
no doubt. Now you cannot pretend that there is the same certainty 
that it will be well with the wicked in the future world. Nothing 
but the clearest evidence that your system cannot possibly prove 
false, can justify any one in risking the interests of his immortal 
soul upon its correctness. Have you that evidence ? Have you 
not rather many fears and misgivings that your system may fail you 
at last? By relying upon it then, do you not run the risk of losing 
every thing, and of falling into endless perdition ? If your system 
be true and we are in an error, we can plead that we were misled 
by interpreting the scriptures in their literal and most obvious 
meaning, and from the fact that the early Christian fathers believed 
and taught the doctrine of endless punishment, and our fears only 
' will be disappointed. And disappointed fear will not be a serious 
evil. We shall be agreeably disappointed, and shall have excited 
only in this life some painful anticipations in the minds of our un- 
godly hearers which have a tendency to deter them from trans- 
gression. But if you are wrong, your hopes will be disappointed. 
Your mistake will prove inexcusable and fatal ; and you will have 
flattered and deceived your hearers to their eternal ruin. Your 
error will be that of the false prophets who belied the Lord and 
said, " It shall riot come upon you." 

I would enquire once more, are you certain that your system is 
correct ? Have you proceeded in the investigation of the subject 
with that caution and that patient investigation that you cannot be 
mistaken ? Are you certain that the doctrine of future punishment 



Lect.10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALISM. 269 

is not taught in the Bible ? Are you certain that there is no danger 
that the finally impenitent shall go away into everlasting punish- 
ment? If there be but a bare possibility of your system proving 
fallacious, and there be any means of lessening that possibility, 
would you not be infatuated not to attend to them ? Now nothing 
but the fullest evidence that your system cannot prove false, can 
justify you for a moment in risking your eternal interests upon its 
correctness. Should it prove false, your reflections will be similar 
to those of that miserable man, Francis Spira, on his dying bed. 
"Take heed, ' said he to the spectators who surrounded his dying 
pillow, "of relying on that faith which works not a holy and unbla- 
mable life worthy of a believer. Credit me, it will fail you. I have 
tried it; I presumed I had gotten the right faith; preached it to 
others; I had all places in scripture in memory that might support 
it ; I thought myself sure ; and in the mean time lived impiously 
and carelessly ; and behold noiv the judgment of God hath overtaken 
me not to correction but to damnation" Have you the right faith ? 
Do you firmly believe in your doctrine ? ' Do you now feel satisfied ? 
I do not ask whether you have been able to hold an argument with 
an antagonist, nor whether you have gained proselytes. You may 
have done both. But are you now satisfied ? Have you no reproofs 
of conscience, no misgivings of heart ? If you experience occa- 
sional forebodings, what are you doing ? Because you have some 
doubts and misgivings, are you laboring more sedulously to confirm 
yourself and others in your favorite delusion? But perhaps you 
think you firmly believe in your doctrine, and do not wish to be 
disturbed. Well, the time is coming that will try every man's 
foundation of what sort it is. O ! the solemn consequences should 
your foundation fail you in that trying hour. You may retain your 
confidence in it till near the close of life. But multitudes who have 
been as confident in your system as you now are, in the season of 
health, have had their eyes opened on a death bed to all the dreari- 
ness of their condition, and have renounced their doctrine as a fatal 
delusion f but the instance never w r as known of one giving up a 

* See Appendix. 



270 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES (Lect. !& 

belief of future punishment in a dying hour. 1 do not say that all 
Universalists find their foundation to fail them in a dying hour. 
Cases indeed occur in which the soul clings to it to the last, and 
even with apparent triumph. Many do believe a lie and hold fast 
their delusion to the last. But the cases are far more frequent of 
those who though they have through life remained unshaken, yet at 
the near approach of death they have been filled with distress and 
terror, and have confessed that their false system has ruined them. 
Now where can a person be found who believed in the doctrine of 
endless punishment during life, that has testified with his dying 
breath that his principles have ruined him ? If lie has been a specu- 
lative believer only in the doctrine, and on his death bed has a 
foretaste of despair, he testifies that his system has done him no 
harm j that his speculative views have been correct ; and that he 
has failed through want of a heart conformed to the spirit of his 
speculative faith. 

Are you certain that when you will be called to die. your founda- 
tion will not give way and leave you to sink down in the faintness 
of despair forever ? What would be your feelings if summoned to 
the bar of God, you should hear the Judge with a frown of terrible 
indignation pronounce upon you the sentence of condemnation, and 
say, "Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil 
and his angels.'' " O that you were wise, that you understood this ; 
that you would consider on your latter end! 5 ' Deal honestly with 
yourselves ! When I think of your danger I tremble for your fate I 
And what shall I say more ? 

In view of what has been said in these Lectures, we see that you 
are in danger of endless punishment. You are condemned already, 
and the wrath of God abideth upon you. It is for this reason that 
Christ has died for you, and is now offering you his salvation. 
" Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world !" 
Here is the offer of a gratuitous pardon. Yonder is the New 
Jerusalem with its pearly gates and its streets paved with gold. 
Below is the bottomless pit from which arises the smoke of an 
eternal torment. With these scenes before you, will you remain 



Lect 10.) OF MODERN UNIVERSALIS*!. 271 

unconcerned! unconverted! O renounce your delusion and return 
home to the bosom of your offended God on the ground of a gracious 
pardon, or you must perish forever! 

" Ye sinners seek his grace, 
Whose wrath ye cannot bear ! 
Fly to the shelter of his cross, 
And find salvation there. 

So shall that curse remove, 

By which the Saviour bled ; 

And the last awful day, shall pour 

His blessing on your head." — Doddridge. 



If the on cf truth contained in these Lectures should not 

convince you of the false and unseripturai character of Universalism ? 
but should provoke you to give them a review and furnish to them a 
reply, I hope you will pursue a fair christian course. I hope you 
will not charts me with misrepresentation. If you believe in no 
punishment beyond the grave, or in a limited one only, ycu must 
take that portion of these Lectures only which belongs to yourself. 

I hope ycu will not charge me with contradicting myself. This 
is a commc:: . .■:: when all argument fails. You may 

take passages from their connection and place them beside each 
other, that, without the illustration contained in the context, may 
have the appearance of contradiction. I hope you will not puff me 
as an author that has presented the very ablest book to the public 
evsr written on future punishment, and then take one or more cf the 
weakest ar; a and one or more of the less conclusive texts ? 

and hold them up before the eyes of your readers as a fair specimen 
of the whole work. You will have accomplished nothing to the 
purpose till you shall have answered every argument and explained 
away every passage of scripture. I hope you will meet every argu- 
ment and exposition wit] . . Some when they cannot answer 
an objection, will talk about the subject, endeavor to establish un- 
founded premises by which to bring cut conclusions that shall 
over mi; and c ill raise a cloud cf words 



272 NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES, &c. (Lect. 10. 

before the eyes of their readers, go round and round the subject, 
and eventually evade the real point at issue. 

I hope you will not endeavor to overthrow the arguments for 
endless punishment by sneers, ridicule, wit and sophistry, with which 
many of your writers abound. It is easier to frame a sneer than a 
solid argument. But the time is gone by when this mode of attack 
will have any influence on the minds of sensible men. Such as 
these Lectures are, they are now thrown into the hands of the 
public. They may contain errors which a more matured judgment 
would rectify. 

Owing to my distance from the press, and my want of an oppor- 
tunity to examine the corrected proof sheets, a few trifling mistakes 
appear in the text, which I request the reader to correct ; some of 
the most important of which I have noticed in the Errata. 

To the candid and pious of every denomination I would say in 
conclusion, in the language of young Coleridge, 

" If aught of error or intemperate truth 

Should meet thine ear, think thou that riper age 

Will calm it down, and let thy love forgive it." 



THE POWER OF DIVINE GRACE ILLUSTRATED IN THET 

SURPRISING CONVERSION OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIS!*.. 

The death of Mr. Nathan Dyer is one of those striking instan- 
ces of mortality which we record with more than ordinary interest. 
The grief which this bereavement has inflicted upon a numerous 
circle of surviving friends, is greatly mitigated, as it clearly illus- 
trates the efficacious power of divine grace in fitting the soul for a 
happy transition from its state of probation to its eternal destiny. 

Mr. Dyer was born in Steuben, Vv'ashington County, Maine, in 
1808. He was a young gentleman of respectable connexions, good 
natural judgment and disposition, and a more than ordinary thirst 
for mental improvement. His advantages for literary culture were 
quite limited ; but having a disposition to improve by those he en- 
joyed, he acquired a respectable common education. He was the 
subject of early religious impressions. But these impressions of 
childhood and youth soon wore away, in consequence of his becom- 
ing associsted with those evil men who corrupt and destroy the 
young by thrusting into their hands books and newspapers which 
are artfully designed to unhinge their moral and religious principles, 

* While delivering the preceding Lectures, the subject of this narrative was 
called to exchange worlds. The circumstances of his last painful illness were 
peculiarly interesting, as they illustrate the power of sovereign grace in the 
conversion of the sinner. These circumstances I related in the sermon which I 
preached at his funeral, and also in the delivery of these Lectures. I have now 
thrown the remarks then made into this appendix, hoping they may prove 
interesting to the friends of religion. — W. G. Rider. 



274 THE SURPRISING CONVERSION 

and by assailing the great truths of religion with sophistry and ridi- 
cule. At twenty-one he became a confirmed sceptic. He now put 
away the subject of religion with entire thoughtlessness and with 
fixed aversion ; and exhausted all the resources of his wit, ridicule, 
and argument to disprove the validity and divine authenticity of por- 
tions of the holy scriptures. And by endeavoring to bring into 
contempt a part of the Bible, he aimed to destroy the authority of 
the whole. How long he persisted in questioning the sacred char- 
acter of the scriptures, I am not able to state with precision. On 
reflection, however, he came to the conclusion that the Bible, which 
contained the very best system of morals, and the most excellent 
institutions, and bore so many signatures of divinity, must be of 
divine authenticity and inspiration. 

But he foresaw that if he received the Bible as the word of God, 
he must admit the doctrine of eternal rewards and punishments. 
To the reception of this truth his heart was barred. And owing to 
the stratagems of Satan, the spiritual adversary ; the want of a real 
hold of Christianity in its substantial blessings ; the pride of reason 
the fruit of man's corrupt and depraved nature ; and the strength of 
youthful passions, he was led to enquire if he could not be a be- 
liever in Christianity, and yet deny all that he deemed offensive in 
its doctrines and uncomfortable in its restraints. 

That modification of Christianity of recent date which existed 
under the name of Universalism, was at this time preached in the 
place of his residence. He listened to the pleasing sound of "peace, 
peace," for a few sabbaths, and became prepossessed in favor of this 
new-fangled divinity. It announced to him that eternal felicity 
was sure to him and to the whole human family, though they should 
walk in the imaginations of their own hearts to add drunkenness to 
thirst. 

The scheme appeared exactly suited to the prevailing inclination 
of his heart, and coincided with his reigning views and pursuits. It 
promised him impunity in the paths of vice, and confirmed his wa- 
vering hopes and feeble prospects of future happiness. After listen- 
ing to the principles and preaching of Universalists for a few weeks, 



OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIS 1 ! 1 . 275 

he declared himself fully established in their doctrine. He soon 
became a firm and decided advocate for Universalism, anxious to 
banish the scruples of more cautious minds, and to carry them at all 
lengths with his own. And he was too successful. Yet he was at 
times led to ponder the paths of his feet, and to examine the foun- 
dation of his hope for eternity. Conscience, awakened from her 
lethargy, would condemn him for his impiety and immorality, and 
lash him with her scorpion stings. She would at times prevent him 
from entirely believing his own lie. When he was the most confi- 
dent in his belief of the final salvation of all men, he was afraid to 
read any author who treated the doctrine of future punishment in 
a calm and searching manner. And he did not like to read those 
passages of scripture which seemed to imply or express that doctrine. 
They made him uneasy. Conscience would reprove him, and he 
found it difficult to silence her remonstrances. 

He appears, however, to have taken no small pains to rid himself 
of his scruples. His very fears and misgivings, with regard to the 
truth of his system, led him to cling to it with greater tenacity, 
His wicked life threw his mind under a bias towards the hope that 
though he should rejoice in his youth, and let his heart cheer him in 
the days of his youth, and walk in the ways of his heart and in the 
sight of his eyes, yet for these things God would not bring him into 
judgment. And then his belief confirmed its dominion in the hope 
which it imparted to his impenitent life. And as his confidence in 
Universalism increased, his hatred and opposition to experimental 
religion appeared the more virulent. Pie considered holiness and 
piety as empty names, and repentance, faith, humility and devotion 
as hypocricy, pride, and self-righteousness. He habitually treated 
vital religion with scorn, ridicule and blasphemy, and called its pro- 
fessors bigots, fanatics, and hypocrites. Nor did he stop here. 
As his principles had a tendency to destroy all moral distinction 
between virtue and vice, so did his practice. He advocated that all 
would be happy after death whose life had been one continual de- 
velopment of a depraved heart, evil dispositions, and impure conver- 
sation ; and he acted upon his principles. The whole of his conduct 



676 THE SURPRISING CONVERSION 

illustrates the depravity of fallen creatures. Ye advocates of human 
innocence and purity, behold your doctrine exemplified in the sub- 
ject of this narrative ! — conceived in sin ; shapen in iniquity ; every 
imagination of the thoughts of the hearty only evil, continually ; 
and the whole life one descending progress in wickedness ! And 
such would all the posterity of the first parents of our race be, if left 
to themselves, and deprived of the restraints of divine providence. 

But the disease which terminated his life accomplishing its work 
by a very gradual process, gave him an opportunity to investigate 
the subject of his actual preparation for the solemnities of a dying 
hour. Yet he remained firm and unmoved in his opinion that he 
had nothing to fear from the approach of death. His mind was 
perfectly at rest. Ke had nothing on his conscience. Having 
lived in the constant neglect of God and his worship, he was now 
drawing near the borders of the grave carelessly indifferent to the 
concerns of his immortal soul. 

He had at this time no intercourse with persons wbo publicly 
professed experimental religion, nor did he request it. He mani- 
fested a strong unwillingness to have any pious person enter his 
room and converse with him on experimental religion. By the re- 
quest of a pious relative of his, the Rev. Mr. S. was called to con- 
verse and pray with him ; but he would not suffer this minister to 
enter his sick bed-room. His reply, when asked if he was willing 
that Mr. S. should visit and converse with him, was, " Tell him I 
don't want to see him nor have him say any thing to me. My mind 
is composed — I don't want to have it disturbed." 

The stupid insensibility and impenitency of his mind seemed to 
keep pace with the rapidity of his decline. Though rapidly draw- 
ing near the verge of death and eternity, yet he retained his confi- 
dence and seemed about to expire in the full belief of his favorite 
delusion. But at the near approach of death, his delusion vanished 
as a dream when one awaketh. The opening scenes of eternity 
revealed to him the unsubstantial character of his foundation, and 
annihilated his fallacious hope. He saw that he had erected the 
fabric of his hope upon the sand of error instead of the rock of 



OP A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIS! 1 . 277 

truth, and that it would not bear the trial. He became alarmed in 
view of his condition. A conviction of his sinfulness and an appre- 
hension of "sudden destruction without remedy," swept away ail 
the proofs which he had sedulously collected in favor of Universal- 
ism. He became fully convinced that the doctrine of endless pun- 
ishment was no fiction, but a truth of momentous import, whether 
he believed it to be so or not ; and that by shutting his eyes against 
it, would by no means diminish but greatly augment his danger. 

About this time, a Mr. P. visited him and made some enquiries 
respecting his views and feelings in prospect of the near approach 
of death. He replied, U I am conscious that I must soon die, and I 
feel that I am not prepared for death." Mr. P. knowing what had 
been his former belief, remarked that his former associates in sin 
and in error who had witnessed his confidence in his delusion, 
would now say that he had been frightened by the selfish and re- 
vengeful principles of the Orthodox. To this he replied, < ; No 
person has said any thing to me about the concerns of my soul, or 
the subject of religion. The reflections of my own mind have con- 
vinced me that I am a sinner, undone, and that dying in my sins, 
an eternal hell is my portion." 

Sensible that he could not live, and that he was unprepared to 
die, he sent an earnest and express message to me to come over 
and see him. I hastened to the chamber of the sick man, and found 
him in an agony of terror, deepening every moment with death in 
immediate view, and an awful eternity before him. As soon as I 
had seated myself by his bedside, he began to express his views and 
feelings. With a countenance that spoke more forcibly than even 
his own words, he looked upon me and said, " How glad I am you 
have taken pains to come over and see me. I was afraid that I 
should not see you before I should die. I have been quite anxious 
for some time, to see you 5 for it has appeared to me that you could 
tell me what I must do to be saved. I have in years past based my 
hope of heaven and happiness upon the doctrine of universal salva- 
tion ; and I have been entirely blinded in my delusion till of late. 
But I now find that it is a scheme of the most licentious and danger- 
x 



$78 THE SURPRISING CONVERSION 

otis tendency. My principles afford me no comfort and support 
now I am sick and about to die. It is said by some that ' the doctrine 
of Universalism answers well enough to live by, but it does not 
sufrice for the dying hour ;' but I am convinced that it will answer 
neither to live hy nor to die hy. 1 am fully convinced that eter- 
nal rewards and punishments are substantial realities. And I am 
afraid that I have so long held to my delusion, and despised and 
rejected the Saviour, that there is no mercy for me. I know if I 
die in this state I must go to hell." 

I here availed myself of the opportunity to open to and impress 
upon his mind the fundamental doctrines of the gospel, and to pre- 
sent to hirn. the offer of a long-neglected Saviour. He listened 
with the greatest eagerness, and would often interrupt me that I 
might explain to him more fully some grand truth of revelation. I 
felt that the Spirit of God was opening his heart to the reception of 
divine truth. Having explained to him the grand method of salva- 
tion through Jesus Christ, warned him of his guilt and danger, and 
directed him to " the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the 
world," 1 put tip a short prayer in his behalf, and left him for an hour 
to his own reflections. 

On my return I found him in the same state of mind, only his 
anxiety and distress was augmented. " O, (said he,) I fear there t3 
no mercy for me. I have lived in sin all my days. I have wasted 
all those precious privileges and golden opportunities which God 
graciously afforded me to become wise unto salvation. I would not 
seek and serve the Lord, and now it is too late" 1 told him to look 
to Christ for mercy, and repeated to him a number of encouraging 
sentences out of the Bible ; but he still cried out, "God is merciful, 
but it is too late. There is no mercy for me." 

He had a great sense of his entire and deep rooted depravity. I 
was reminded by his confessions, of the lamentation of a sinner as 
described by Mason: 

"I have been Satan's willing slave, 4 

And his most easy pray ; 
He was not readier to command 

Than I was to obey. 



I 



OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIS!*. 279 

If any time he left my soul, 

Yet still his work went on ; 
I've been a tempter to myself — 

Ah ! Lord, what have I done !" 

Though he mourned over the number and aggravation of his 
actual transgressions, yet his greatest distress arose from a sense 
of the wickedness of his heart. He seemed also to recognize the 
justice of God in his eternal condemnation, and expressed a wonder 
that God had borne with him so long, and had not cast him down to 
hell. And he was sensible that there was no hope of salvation 
for him from any source but the unmerited grace of God. But he 
could not see how it was possible for him to be saved. "I see 
(says he) that it would be just in God to cast me off forever ; but I 
do not see how God can be just and have mercy upon such a sinner 
as I am." I reminded him that nothing was " too hard for the Lord ;" 
that he could " pardon iniquity and pass by the transgression of the 
remnant of his heritage ;" that he had publicly exhibited his Son a 
propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of men, and he can now " be just 
and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." 

He remained in great distress of mind through the day. As his 
strength and state of mind would permit, I conversed with and pray- 
ed for him. I felt my soul in an unusual degree drawn out in prayer 
to God for his salvation. And I obtained a kind of assurance that 
God would have mercy upon this dying man. 

In the after part of the day, his mind, under the operations of the 
Holy Spirit, was brought to a crisis. He could turn neither to the 
right hand nor to the left. He was cut off from every source of 
-consolation except that which arises from faith in Christ, and of this 
he felt himself incapable. And he would vent the sorrow of his 
heart in language similar to that of the weeping prophet. M He 
hath buiided against me, and compassed me .with gall and travail. 
He hath set me in dark places as those that be dead of old. He 
hath hedged me about that I cannot get out ; he hath made my 
chain heavy. Also when I cry he shutteth out my prayer!" He 
appeared to be "shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be 



280 THE SURPRISING CONVERSION 

revealed." To show more fully the real state of his mind, I will 
relate a few of his expressions as he lay and conversed with himself. 
" This then is the only alternative. I must repent and return home 
to God by Jesus Christ, or sink down to hell forever. I have been 
a great sinner. I grow no better, but worse. I cannot make amends 
for my transgressions, nor can I make myself any better. My own 
righteousness is filthy rags. The only alternative is to yield and 
give my heart to God. I must go to him just as I am. But oh ! if 
I had somewhat to recommend me to the Saviour, I could goto him 
with assurance ; but if I should now give myself away to him, vile 
and hell-deserving as I am, he would certainly cast me off." Here 
he burst into tears and gave vent to the bitter agonies of his soul. 

Though convinced that Christ was the only Saviour, yet he 
"would not come to him that he might have life." He had not yet 
dared to venture his all upon the mercy of God. But the Holy 
Spirit, intimately acquainted with the inward structure of the human 
mind, without doing violence to his moral nature, was gradually 
preparing him to renounce his own righteousness and to find peace 
and joy in the Saviour. His mind now became deeply impressed. 
He cried, and groaned, and prayed that the mercy which he had so 
lightly esteemed, might be extended to him. Frequently would he 
exclaim " what must I do to be saved ? what must I do to be saved ?" 

After his mind became more calm, I opened and gave to him a 
historical sketch of the four leprous men at the gate of Samaria, 
while the city was besieged by the army of the Syrians. I remarked 
that their lives were truly in jeopardy. They saw no prospect of 
escaping immediate death, whether they returned into the city or 
remained where they were. Hence they took their lives in their 
hands and threw themselves upon the mercy of those from whom 
they had no reason to expect any favor. Death was before them,, 
" and they said one to another, why sit we here till we die ? If we 
say, we will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and 
we shall die there ; and if we sit still here, we die also. Now., 
therefore, come and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians ; if they 
save us alive, we shall live ; and if they kill us, we shall but die?' 






OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIST. 281 

Thus, I observed, you must come to God. These men went to the 
camp of the Syrians, not having one condition to propose or one 
plea to make. You must fall into the hands of the Lord, and leave 
it with him to decide what shall be done. While these men were 
forming their resolution and carrying it into execution, God was 
graciously working out their deliverance. If you make a full sur- 
render of yourself and your all into the hands of the Lord, he will 
work out your deliverance and salvation. 

" O, (says he,) I would venture my soul upon the mercy of God if 
he would previously give me an assurance that he will not cast me 
off." Thus he manifested that he had yet no confidence in God, no 
love to his character, and no faith in his word; but was under the 
workings of a self-righteous spirit. Re would not accept of mercy 
as one of the chief of sinners. I told him that God had promised 
that those who should come to him he would in no wise cabt off. 
" Perhaps so, (he replied,) but I am afraid to venture upon the mercy 
of God and leave it with him to decide what shall be done." 

This occasioned a violent struggle in his mind, and I felt to hope 
that the time was near when God would release his soul from its 
bondage to sin and Satan. His convictions of the exceeding sinful- 
ness of sin, and of the holiness and justice of God, were overwhelm- 
ing. But it was done. Early in the evening he began to express 
some degree of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. a O, (says he to me 
as I approached his bed-side,) I do find it safe trusting in the Lord. 
I can trust my soul in the hands of the Saviour. He will save unto 
the uttermost all who come to God by him. God in Christ can be 
just and yet save the chief of sinners. The apostle says, 'This is a 
faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came 
into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief.' 'The blood of 
Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin.' My mind is calm. Perhaps I 
am deceived ; but my feelings are different from what I ever before 
experienced. After he had repeated several passages of scripture 
very distinctly, and had made some comments upon them, he calmly 
engaged in prayer. 

A short time after, I enquired into the state of his mind. He 

x* 



282 THE SURPRISING CONVERSION' 

observed, " I have no evidence that my sins are forgiven ; but my 
mind is tranquil." I repeated to him the following stanzas of Br. 

Watts: 

" My lips with shame my sins confess, 
Against thy law, against thy grace ; 
Lord, should thy judgments grow severe, 
I am condemned, but thou art clear. 

Should sudden vengeance seize my breath, # 
I must pronounce thee just in death ; 
And if my soul were sent to hell, 
Thy righteous law approves it well. 

Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord, 
Whose hope, still hovering round thy word, 
Would light on some sweet promise there, 
Some sure support against despair." 

" These lines (he remarked) express my case. These are my I 
lugs." His mind was peaceful and calm through the night. In the 
morning his countenance assumed a heavenly aspect, and his ema- 
ciated system seemed re-animated, and with his tongue he uttered 
praise to divine grace. Yet he was almost afraid to hope. He 
remarked that his heart was very deceitful and desperately wicked ; 
that it had deceived him often, and he was afraid that it would de- 
ceive him again. 

The Bible before neglected, or consulted only for the purpose of 

finding arguments to support a pre-ccnceived theory of religion, 

now became his constant companion and guide. He read it and 

heard it read with delight. He told me that the Bible appeared like 

a new book. 

"Precious Bible! what a treasure 

Does the word of God afford." 

Christians, before despised and ridiculed, he now deem the ex- 
cellent of the earth. He desired their company and their prayers. 
lie loved them because he discovered in them the image of his 
Saviour, and because they were beloved for the Father's sake. 

As his bodily strength failed him, his spiritual strength increased. 
From this period to the time of his death, it was difficult for any 



OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSAUST. 283 

one to enter Mr. Dyer's sick room and converse with him or hear 
him converse, without being constrained to acknowledge the power 
of divine grace in his conversion. Although some who knew him 
in his former character and belief supposed him to be beyond the 
reach of the gospel, and so attached to his peculiar doctrines, that 
all reasoning with him would be in vain ; yet the reality of his con- 
version to God possesses an indubitable claim to our belief. His 
repentance and faith appeared to be the genuine work of the Holy 
Spirit on his mind. He manifested an ardent attachment to Christ 
to his people, to his word, and to his cause. His conversation with 
those who had been his former associates in sin and error, was char- 
acterized by a spirit of compassion and Christian fidelity. He 
warned them of the pernicious and fatal tendency of their scheme, 
and besought them, with tears, to renounce it, and embrace the 
Saviour. 

When I was about to take my leave of him, he clasped my hand, 
with tears ; thanked God for my visit to him ; requested me to 
preach his funeral sermon, and to say to the congregation that it 
was his dying testimony that Universalism was a fatal and soul- 
ruining system ; and then, commending me to God, he bid me 
farewell — expressing a belief that we should meet in heaven, where 
parting would be known no more. 

From this time until the day of his death he seemed like one 
waiting for the coming of his Lord. One day, while reflecting on 
these words, " Then they that gladly received his word were bap- 
tized./' "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved," his mind 
was led into the ordinance of believers' baptism. He saw the 
command and example was to believe and be baptized. And baptism 
by immersion which had before appeared to him a fit subject of 
laughter and ridicule, now appeared to him to be an ordinance of 
Christ, of peculiar delight. And he expressed a wish that he might 
obey the command of Christ and be buried with him by baptism. 
Yet as he considered this not essential to salvation, he was will- 
ing to depart and be with Christ, where he could enjoy his 
presence without having submitted to those ordinances which Gcd 
has given to his Church on earth. 



284 THE SURPRISING CONVERSION 

He often expressed an earnest desire to depart this life and b& 
with Christ. Yet he was not impatient. Though very fretful and 
peevish before his conversion, yet after his conversion he endured 
his extreme pains without one complaint or the slightest murmur. 

A short time before his decease,, he called his parents and broth- 
ers and sisters to his bedside, and warned and intreated them to 
prepare to meet him in heaven. He addressed them individually 
on the concerns of their undying souls and in a language and tone 
that drew tears from every eye in the room. He then appeared to 
be absorbed in devout meditation, and composing himself to die, 
virtually saying, in the language of Addison, " Come see how a 
Christian can die ;" he submissively yielded his spirit to God on the 
21th day of April, 1835, aged 26 years, 4 months and 17 days, 
leaving for the consolation of surviving friends, pleasing evidence 
that their loss is his eternal gain. 

Is not this a monument of divine grace — a brand plucked from 
the eternal burnings ? 

" Great is the work my heart replied, 
And be the glory Thine. " 

I have already exceeded the limits which I had prescribed in 
composing this narrative, but I cannot conclude without adverting to 
the solemn warning which it suggests to those who are building 
their hopes of future blessedness upon the exceedingly frail founda- 
tion of Universal Salvation. Mr. Dyer was once as confident of 
peace and safety from this source as any one of you can possibly 
be ; and had he died as he lived hardened in his iniquity, and in a 
state of stupid insensibility, and in the full be-lief of his delusion, 
you would have probably pronounced his death happy and glorious. 
But he lived to bless God that he was rescued from the belief of a 
delusion which hardened his heart, and quieted his apprehensions 
of danger, while he was under the sentence of condemnation and 
every moment exposed to endless punishment. And he looked upon 
his rescue from the delusive scheme of Universalism as a deliver- 
ance from the belief of a lie that was working out his eternal dam- 



OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIS!*. 285 

nation. And he often expressed a wonder that God by the reno- 
vating power of his Holy Spirit had opened his eyes to see his 
guilt and danger, and had turned his wayward feet into the paths 
of life. " O what a wonder it is that God did not give me up to my 
strong delusions to believe my own lie and be damned, since I did 
not love the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness." 

Some of you may say, that Mr. Dyer was never decidedly attached 
to the doctrine of Universaiism, and that his misgivings were oc- 
casioned by his not being an honest, thorough-going believer in that 
scheme. I should not have anticipated this objection had I not 
already received it from a source whence we might expect such 
objections to be raised. But to this I would reply, that he betrayed 
no doubt or misgivings on this ground. He found Universalism was 
the grand delusion by which the father of lies first succeeded in 
introducing sin into the world, and by which he is still tempting the 
children of men to sin, and lulling their consciences into security. 
And such will you find it to be sooner or later. It may now appear 
to you a pleasing doctrine, but it will infallibly deceive and disap- 
point you. Like a mercenary friend who will fawn around you in 
the hour of prosperity, but who will forsake you in adversity, will 
your principles prove in sickness and the near approach of death. 
Avoid this doctrine then as you would the snares of death. Cease 
to listen to the pleasing delusion that "you shall have peace though 
you walk in the imagination of your heart to add drunkenness to 
thirst." You are now on probation for the rewards : of eternity. 
What you do in the present life, is fixing your destiny in the com- 
ing world. O that you would examine the unsubstantial nature of 
your hopes ; renounce them and seek the mercy of God in Christ, 
before your final doom is sealed in that world of endless rebellion 
against God where errors can never be retracted, where mistakes 
can never be rectified, where evils can never be remedied, and 
where joy and hope can never come ! * 

Let no one, from the perusal of this narrative, presume that he 
may continue through life in a course of iniquity and impiety, and 
that he has only to repent at last and all will be well. There is 



28$ THE SURPRISING CONVERSION 

only ose instance recorded in scripture of the mercy of God being 
sought and obtained at the last hour of life by one who had lived in 
the neglect of God and his worship, that none might presume ; and 
there is o^te that none might despair. An instance of divine mercy 
being extended even at the last hour, is here related, and earnestly 
and affectionately recommended to the attentive perusal of those 
who imagine that they can safely live in sin and neglect the con- 
cerns of their immortal souls to the last ; but who will have painfully 
to acknowledge, with Mr. D., if awakened to reflection, that " they 
would not seek the Lord in health and strength, and now it is too 
late" O that you were wise ! that you understood this ! that you 
would consider your latter end! O that you would not defer to the 
weakness and agitation of a dying hour an attention to the things 
which belong to your everlasting peace, lest you should then find 
that they are forever hid from your eyes. " Seek ye the Lord while 
he may be found, and call ye upon him while he is near." "To-day, 
if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts ; for " he that 
being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed 
and that without remedy." O that such persons who are presuming 
on a death-bed repentance and amendment, could have been per- 
mitted to witness the horrors of mind and the anguish of spirit which 
this person had "with death in immediate view and an awful eter- 
nity before him," they would not thus continue in sin that grace 
might abound. Could they have listened to his heart-rending cries 
for mercy, and heard him lament that he had neglected God and 
religion, that now it was too late, and that he must " die in his sins" 
and "go away into everlasting punishment," surely they would not 
heap to themselves wrath against the day of wrath and revelation 
of the righteous judgments of God. And if they should indulge the 
trembling hope that the cry for mercy at the last hour may be heard, 
how faint and uncertain does this hope appear when we consider 
how often a sick bed repentance proves spurious, and when we 
contrast this hope with the peaceful assurance, the holy confidence, 
and the glorious triumph that sheds its blessed lustre over those 
who at the close of a life spent in the service of God, can say, "I 






OF A PROFESSED UNIVERSALIS! 1 . 286 

am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 
I have fought a good fight ; 1 have finished my course ; I have kept 
the faith. Henceforth there is ]aid up for me a crown of righteous- 
ness which the Lord the righteous Judge shall give me at that day." 
M Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright ; for the end of that 
man is peace." Though the christian who is permitted to look 
back upon a life spent in the service of God, builds his hopes exclu- 
sively on the atonement and righteousness of Christ, yet his holy 
and consistent life which is the fruit of genuine faith, affords him 
comfort and support in the hour of his departure. O that such aa 
are living without God and' without any well-grounded hope, could 
be persuaded to seek their happiness in him and in his service. 
Then would they learn that while "the way of the transgressor is 
hard," " the ways of wisdom are ways of pleasantness and all bar 
paths are peace." 



T3S EFTP- 



ERRATA. 



Page 14, for prosihein read 'prothesin.' P. 18, in line 10, for they 
read 'the disciples. 5 P. 19, for ainon read 'aionorJ P. 20, for 
Sabbinical read ' the Rabbinical,' and for Tarquins read ' Targums.' 
P. 23, in line 15, for has been read ' will be.' P. 26, line 7, blot out 
not ; and 28, blot out ever since. P. 30, in line 18, for here read 
'* there,' and line 2, from bottom, for £7ie sinner read ' sinners.' P. 40, 
for inference read 'interference.' P. 47, line 6 from bottom, after 
be, add ' no.' P. 53, line 13, for are read 'as.' P. 59, line 11, for 
destruction read ' salvation.' P. 60, line 2, after shall insert ' never' 
find. P. 70, for precedure read 'procedure.' P. 94, line 14, for 
*iieir$ read 'those.' P. 128, in line 5, for from read 'in.' P. 129, 
line 12, for teaches read 'teach.' P. 139, line 10, for o/read 'to.' 
P. 156, line 2 from bottom for o/read ' to.' P. 188, line 9, for the 
read ' them.' P. 209, line 19, blot out of P. 212, line 25, after 
which add ' he.' P. 221, line 5 from bottom, for perverts read 'per- 
vert.' P. 229, line 15, for have read ' had.' P. 233, for the quiei 
Universalisis read 'the quiet of Universalism.' P. 228, for restrain 
read 'retain.' P. 243, for worked read ' marked.' P. 257, line 13, 
blot out and. P. 261, for work read ' mark.' P. 264, for which read 
'such.' P. 251, for Giles* case read 'Giles Cone.' P. 101, for pre- 
vented read 'and prevent.' 



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